The Ishinomaki Years
by Pyeknu
Summary: The first sequel series to The Senior Year. Concentrates on the adventures of Ataru's and Lum's daughter Reiko and her friends as they attend the Ishinomaki Young Women's Academy.
1. The Dragon's Breath

Noukiyek City . . .

Regardless of time of day or season, it always seemed so misty in this part of the capital city.

"Perhaps the Empress' Spirit in Heaven is still crying over her lost kingdom."

Blinking after she verbally uttered the old wives' tale as to why this hilly part of the capital of Noukiios always seemed shrouded in fog, Shoono Asuza felt her cheeks redden before she took a calming breath. Then, on seeing there was no traffic coming from any direction, she moved to cross Kap'eng Street at the T-junction it formed with Honek Boulevard and Huning Street to her usual place for practice. It was past dawn; the bright orange-gold of Ch'uokyuk trying desperately to burn through the fog banks cloaking over the jagged peaks of Mount Hap'ung, Mount K'ap'ut' and Mount Utu to the far east. She was still trying to adjust to the twenty-six hour Noukiite day; getting up while it was still dark out so she could come from her flat to the imposing edifice of the Eukseu Gate, the main entrance to the Yekk'eng Palace, didn't tire her.

"Still coming here to play?"

Even if she had heard that question every morning since she started coming to this part of Noukiyek to practice her hobby with her Stainer replica, Asuza's breath caught in her throat before she turned to gaze on the white-haired man seated at a stone bench placed not several metres from the eastern of the three portals of Eukseu Gate which led into the main reception courtyard of Yekk'eng Palace. Taking a moment to ask herself _again_ as to how a blind man -- his eyes were always closed and he used a well-formed stick of wood as a walking cane -- could sense her presence, she bowed. Even if she didn't like certain aspects of her birth culture's traditions these days, they had been drilled into her incessantly by her mother throughout her life and weren't easy to cast aside. "Heaven's blessings on you, Ojii-san," she greeted him in the traditional way, thankful that, when she was on Sagussa, she had a universal translator inserted in her brain that would allow her to speak in and interpret his native language and dialect. She then felt a touch of rebelliousness race through her as she added, "You always ask me that question every time I come here!"

He seemed to "look" at her with those closed eyes, and then a chuckle escaped him as he gave her an apologetic nod. "Yes, I have! I have!" He canted his head as if he was thinking of something. "So tell me, young one: Why DO you come to Yekk'eng-ak to practice with your violin?" He pronounced it in the Noukiite common way, "pai-o-rin." "Is there something about Yekk'eng-ak which inspires you?"

Asuza considered his question for a moment, and then she looked up at the gate's nameplate, painted on a lacquered wooden sign hanging some ten metres over the central portal. "The palace reminds me of another palace on my home world. It's called Kyoungbok-gung . . . " -- Asuza could speak some Korean, so she didn't find it hard to pronounce the final consonant sounds that were almost always absent in Japanese -- "It's in a city called 'Seoul' in a country called 'Korea;' they're our closest neighbours. I always thought it the most beautiful place on Earth. I always wanted to visit it, but many in my country don't look kindly on the Koreans. Every time I told my parents that I wanted to travel to Korea, they always refused me. It's rather foolish if you ask me, but . . . " A disdainful look crossed her face. "Who was I to judge? I hadn't even passed through my first year of high school before I went to Sagussa, and then eventually came here to Noukiios." She closed her eyes. "And I still don't know what I'm looking for."

The elder Noukiite had remained respectfully silent as he listened to the Terran's tale. He nodded as if in understanding. "You'll find it sooner or later, young traveller. But why leave Terra to travel to the World of Holy Reincarnation . . . " -- that was the common Noukiite euphemism for Sagussa -- "And then come HERE?" One of his eyebrows arched into the rolling hills of his forehead ridges, they almost all hidden by the shock of straight white hair that extended to his collars, covering most of his ears.

"Getting away from home and being forced into potential marriages with people I never could make myself like," Asuza answered as she walked over to place her violin case on the bench beside him. Opening it, she drew out the beautiful instrument, a replica made by a Japanese luthier who had studied the work of Jacob Stainer years ago. Placing it on her shoulder, she relaxed her chin on the lower bout near the tailpiece as she drew out her bow to warm up in the scales before she began to play in earnest.

As a medley of both modern and classical Earth music flowed from her instrument, her audience remained respectfully quiet. While a Terran violin didn't have the echoing twang of a well-tuned uyuat', an instrument whose sounds could -- as the old saying went -- make the heart ache and the soul weep, it still was pleasant. Even better since it was obvious Shoono Asuza was a passionate player. Though he was physically blind, the elderly man had other senses, honed over his long lifetime, by which he could call on to tell him many things about this young girl. One who felt caged by her upbringing, always yearning to spread her wings and fly free, chart her life's course as she wanted, not as others wanted her to be.

Before he could allow himself to relax and enjoy the music, he tensed as a strange feeling rushed through his mind. Were he of the habit of opening his almost-white eyes, he would have revealed the curious truth of his ancestry to the young Asuza; she seemed quite knowledgeable when it came to the civilized races of the local cluster and beyond. Before he could try to better focus his tracking powers onto whoever had just approached from the direction of Huning Street, Asuza's violin went silent. "Ojii-san . . .?"

"Yes, dear?"

"There's an Oni man passing through the gate into the palace."

The elder remained still for a moment, and then he rose with an economy of moment that hinted at years of martial arts training, his hand reaching over to grasp his burnt ironwood cane. "How was he dressed?"

"Defence Force uniform," Asuza hissed. "Some type of officer, I think, but I couldn't see his rank tabs. I was taught how to recognise them back when I was on Sagussa."

The elder nodded. It was quite rare to see any Urusian in Noukiyek; those who did live on this world resided on the Nachna Islands, located on the other side of the planet from Noukiios' two main continents. It was even rarer for a member of the Urusian military to be here; the Urusian Union's embassy was located on Kap'p'ak, one of the larger islands in the Pearl Archipelago (as the Nachna Islands were often called).

What would one of THEM be doing in this part of the capital, this early in the day?

Walking away from Asuza, his cane probed ahead of him as he passed through the central portal of Eukseu Gate into the courtyard beyond. That was walled off from the rest of the palace by a high square stone fence, it pierced on the north side by Sakchyo Gate. Concentrating, he focused his powers on the visitor, who was walking onto the Kaknu Bridge, which would lead him through the portals of Achnek Gate and right to the front doors of Achnek Hall. Remembering the history he had experienced in his nearly 350 years of life, the elder knew that it was within the beautifully-constructed walls of Achnek Hall where the second-to-last Emperor of Nehech, the Eukt'ach' Emperor (then known in his life as Emperor Enek) had held court.

Why was he . . .?

"Heaven's most sincere blessings on you."

He stopped just after he passed through Sakchyo Gate, his powers quickly telling him the young visitor was currently standing on the highest point of the arch of the Kaknu Bridge. Tightly gripping his cane, the elder relaxed on sensing that Asuza had followed him from the palace's main gate, she a metre behind him. He tensed once more on realising the young man currently addressing him was speaking in Noukiite, with a rich Ryekkyuk accent to boot. With that, he inclined his head, "And to you, young traveller." He turned his head to indicate Asuza. "The young musician from Terra tells me you hail from Uru."

"I do, though I claim kin in Kahuch."

Hearing that, the elder nodded. "You are of . . .?"

"The Freedom Five-hundred Clans. Yes, sir, I am." Staring at him, Asuza was quick to note that he was a raven-haired man with dark, inquisitive brown eyes, quite slender even for his race, appearing to be in his early twenties. "I am Hu-Ch'uchrakch'ut'a Chuyeh-Yut'uch."

While she had only been living on Noukiios for the past six months, Asuza had managed to learn how the naming system worked on this planet. The man had just identified himself to his questioner as Huhat'hu, a member of the seventh of Noukiios' super-castes, the so-called "Ten Orders." The long family name didn't strike her at all as being a proper Noukiite name; like Koreans, natives of this world most often preferred single-syllable names. The given name prefix indicated he was the sixth son. As to what his family name, much less his given name, meant in Japanese, Asuza couldn't guess; her translator didn't work that way.

She then jolted on hearing the elder chuckle amusedly. "You Urusians and your long names," he gently scolded the visiting officer as he moved to approach him, his grip on his cane relaxing.

Yut'uch bowed respectfully to the man approaching him. "Ours is a family name well earned during the Liberation War." His eyebrow arched knowingly. "A war you yourself fought in. With all due respect, sir, I _know_ I now have the honour of addressing the Venerable Ye-Etech Chuch'a-Ik'a."

The elder didn't react, though Asuza was quick to note that his gnarled fingers seemed to tighten ever so slightly against his cane. She then jolted on seeing Yut'uch glancing towards her, a grin crossing his face. "You should consider yourself honoured, Ojou-san," he spoke out in accented Japanese as he moved to wave towards the elder. "Do you realise in whose presence you currently stand?"

Asuza took a moment to take that in, and then she glanced towards the older man who had been her only audience since she had started to perform at the main gate of Yekk'eng Palace. "'Venerable' . . .?" she echoed the title Yut'uch had used for the older man. That was the title normally bestowed to non-anointed members of the two highest of the Ten Orders, the Yekhu and the K'et'hu. Yet the man bore no caste tattoos; for most Noukiites, that was interpreted as meaning that he was a member of the local version of Japan's burakumin or India's Dalits, the Uohu. Yet to hear this visitor from Uru address him THAT way -- not to mention imply that the elder had been a veteran of Noukiios' Liberation War two centuries before . . .?!

"Wh-who . . .?" she stammered out.

Yut'uch's grin grew even wider. "Why, he's none other than the Venerable Neuch'ahi, Ojou-san."

Asuza's jaw dropped in shocked disbelief as the Urusian gazed on the elder, his eyes dropping low in profound respect as he added, "The blind wandering warrior who helped the Empress Consort T'yekhek escape from the Urusian Imperial assassins sent after her in 4795 by allowing her to flee into the Yekk'ap'." He gazed once more hopefully at the elder as he moved to kneel before Ik'a, his hand reaching out to the elder's so he could bestow a courtly kiss on the knuckles, as a righteous warrior would always do in the presence of one of the highest castes of the Ten Orders. "And the one who can certainly help restore Her Majesty to these beautiful grounds once more," he added as he looked up into Ik'a's impassive face.

Asuza remained silent as the elder seemed to take that in, and then he sighed.

"It's been a VERY long time since I was ever called THAT," Ik'a mused.

* * *

**Urusei Yatsura - The Ishinomaki Years**  
_**The Dragon's Breath**_  
by Fred Herriot

First of a series of stories based on _Urusei Yatsura_, created by Takahashi Rumiko

Based on the universe of _Urusei Yatsura - The Senior Year_, created by Mike Smith and Fred Herriot

_(Note: All writer's notes are located at the end of the story text) _

* * *

_"You gaze into a sun that never sets, Marina-yu."_

_"Beats doing other things in this place, Nukyek-cha."_

_The middle-aged Noukiite woman amusedly tittered as she gazed on her seated companion, they currently on the flat heights of a mountain which overlooked a vast valley, it cut in half by a flowing river that came from another mountain to the south, then, after meeting up with a river flowing from the west, turned to flow off towards the north-east into the mist. Located in the point where the rivers conjoined was a beautiful city, vast by modern standards on any world Marina personally knew of. She had known ever since she had come to this place -- how long ago had it been? -- that the city was meant to represent Yekna, one of Noukiios' spiritually significant urban centres outside of Ryekkyuk. A place spared the ravages of the occupation forced on her companion's people during the last century of the Urusian Empire's existence._

_A hand gently grasped the dusky-skinned Oni's shoulder. "Marina, come to the hut and make yourself warm," the Noukiite bade her with an inviting smile. "The fire is good and high and even if we can, in our own way, wish other things to happen here, it would take some time to take full effect."_

_Marina blinked as she reached up to gently grasp her companion's hand. "I don't mind the cold."_

_A chuckle escaped the other woman. "Which part of you is speaking now?"_

_She got an annoyed glare from Marina in return. A tomboyish woman appearing in her late teens, she had the luminescent green hair and twin horn-buds on her temples marking her at first glance as Oni-Urusian. But once one saw her Yehisrite skin colour, one would realise there was MUCH more to Marina -- "Marina of Dysos" was her baptized name within the Royal Kingdoms; elsewhere, she was known as "Muzuka Marina" -- than met the eye. An even closer look would reveal the elongated lower earlobes more common to Fukunokami than to other hominoid races in the local cluster. And, once you saw her auburn brown eyes glow a bright silver, you would also realise Marina's mother wasn't a pure Yehisrite. Currently, she was dressed in black leather pants and a tank-top T-shirt that wouldn't be seen as out of place on a half-dozen planets; her jacket, the twin to her pants, was back at the hut she and Nukyek currently shared._

_"All of me," she replied as she gave her companion's hand a reassuring squeeze. "I may be Onifu AND Azhis'f, but I'm one person. That's the way I want to be, Nukyek-cha."_

_"I know that," Nukyek gently teased. "But don't forget, before the Venerable Neuch'ahi helped me flee Suchkyuk before the assassins could have their way with me, my exposure to other races was . . . "_

_Marina smirked. "Pretty narrow."_

_"Non-existent," Nukyek admitted. "I didn't even really accept the idea of other races before I was made to marry the Emperor and move to Yekk'eng-ak. They never really came to Suchkyuk in my time."_

Three centuries ago_, Marina mused as she tried not to smile. It had been quite hard for her to befriend Ei-Kyesak T'ich Yesu Nukyek -- known to latter generations as the T'yekhek Empress Consort of Nehech, wife of the Euk'tach' Emperor -- given the latter's lack of any experience with aliens of any sort before she was crowned Empress Consort and flung head ridges-first into the maelstrom of government in the last years of Noukiios' fourth and last worldwide royal dynasty. Given that Marina herself was part-Oni, of the very race whose members had tried to murder Nukyek back in the Noukiite year 4795 when her moves to block the Urusians from subverting her husband's government had become too much for the Imperial Round to tolerate, befriending the Noukiite noblewoman had just made matters worse. Fortunately for Marina's sanity, she had eventually succeeded given that it seemed that both were the only ones trapped in this timeless place._

_It hadn't evolved beyond a pe'cha bond between them, though. Marina was admittedly open about her sexual preference -- and Noukiites had been quite tolerant of such things for many centuries -- yet Nukyek herself was still, in essence, mourning her long-lost husband and children. Atop that, given the sheer number of years between the time that Nukyek and the time that Marina had been embraced by the Dragon's Breath -- the Onifu-Azhis'f hybrid had come here in the time-frame of the Noukiite year 5103 -- one had to take into account the history Marina had been forced to help Nukyek catch up with. The Occupation, the Liberation War and Union Revolution, the founding of the Galactic Federation, the fall of the Yehisrite Imperial House and the founding of the Protectorate, the confrontation with the Ipraedies, the Vosian Civil War, to say anything of the long cold war between the Urusian Union and the Noukiite Dominion . . .!_

_"We'll get out of this place somehow," Marina assured her._

_"Somehow . . . "_

* * *

"Marina-san . . . Mama . . . you'll be free soon . . . "

"Reiko-chan? Are you okay?"

A gasp escaped the slumbering eighteen year-old, Sagussan-enhanced Noukiite girl as she bolted up, her turquoise eyes wide as she scanned around her bedroom. They locked on the pretty blue-haired Tritonian teenager standing by her bed. "Yuri-chan?!" Moroboshi Reiko croaked out in shock before she shook her head, her hand reaching up to wipe the sleep away from her eyes. "What are you doing here right now . . .?"

"We came to visit you, that's what," Yuri noted as the door to Reiko's bedroom opened again to allow K'ech'chut'a Aya to step inside. "You've been acting like a hermit since that incident with Skelad Lara and your sister and her friends back in Tomobiki, so we came to get you back into the sun again."

"Yeah, Reiko-chan," Aya -- known to all her friends beyond her home world of Toshitto as "Willow;" her family name translated from Reiko's native tongue as "willow tree" -- added as she moved to pull the covers away and drag Reiko into the washroom. "You're starting to grow roots. Time to get up and get moving!"

Reiko moaned as she slumped back into bed. "Not in the mood, guys. Can we save it for . . .?"

"NO!" Willow and Yuri barked.

* * *

"Feeling a little better today, Reiko-chan?"

"Do I look like it, Aunt Mal?" Reiko wondered as she walked into the dining room to join her aunts, cousins and her two visiting friends for breakfast. "What's the news today?" she asked as she took her place. "Have Dad and Mom finally woke up and decided to move back here?"

"No such luck, Reiko-chan," Nokoko replied before she exchanged a knowing look with Mal. "Your father made a commitment to teach at Tomobiki High School. You know how much a stickler he is with commitments."

Reiko gave her a tired look. "Even for THAT place, Aunt Nokoko?"

Nokoko nodded. "Hai, even for THAT place. Besides, even if that sub-creature Skelad's in the Black Ocean now, the chances are there that some other lunatic might come along to try to wreck everything your parents did, especially when it concerns Sagussa. The sooner they strive to stay atop all that . . . "

"It would still be better for them to remain here," the Noukiite asserted.

Everyone else stared knowingly at her. "You could have moved down there to live with them, you know," Willow noted. "Even if you did accept the invitation to the Young Women's Academy, you still could have moved down with them so you could stay with them when you're not in classes."

"Even better, you might have decided instead to go to one of the universities in Tokyo," Yuri added. "Your Centre Test scores were high, remember? You didn't need to go to the Academy in the long run."

Reiko took that in, and then she breathed out before she reached over to pick up her bowl of miso -- spiced with red pepper powder to improve the taste, of course -- to begin eating. "Why are you guys going, then?" she asked her former classmates from the Ishinomaki Girls High School.

"Well, there IS Hiromi," Willow mused, a goofy smile crossing her face.

Everyone exchanged looks. Willow had fallen horn buds-over-heels for Fujino Hiromi, a raven-haired, brown-eyed native of Ise in Mie prefecture, during their first year together in high school. While they were engaged by Oni custom -- Hiromi HAD tagged Willow's horns during Golden Week the previous year -- they were still trying to figure out a way to make their relationship "official" here on Earth. They were a quiet, content pair of lovers, Reiko knew; they didn't move to stick their sexual orientation into other people's faces every chance they could. Even better, it seemed as if there was no one in the history of either girl who was willing to come out of the closet and pull them apart. If anyone deserved to make use of a promise necklace, the Noukiite symbol of an engaged couple, it was K'ech'chut'a Aya and Fujino Hiromi.

"What's Hiromi-chan planning to do anyway, Willow?" Nokoko asked.

"Study music and both dialects of Urusian under Suigin-sensei," Willow answered; Renning Suigin, a distant relative of Reiko's adopted maternal aunt Negau, was the Urusian language teacher at the Young Women's Academy. "Once we properly handfast, we'll probably move back to Toshitto and live there. They're looking for more Earth-language teachers throughout the Union, so Hiromi won't be out of potential jobs."

"That's good," Mal mused, and then she blinked on hearing the videophone ring. "Who could that be?" she wondered aloud as she walked over to the unit, located by the front door. Smiling on seeing the name on the display screen, she then activated it. "Moshi-moshi. Is that you, Sister?"

"Hai, Mal-chan, it's me!" Lum called back from Tomobiki. "Is Reiko-chan up yet?"

"Hai, she is. Reiko!"

Reiko walked over to the videophone unit. "You coming back soon, Mom?" she asked.

Lum jolted on hearing her adopted daughter's question, and then she sighed. "Reiko-chan, your father and I both have jobs down here now. We can't just quit and move back up to Oshika, you know . . . "

"I know! I know!" Reiko cut her off with a stern nod, and then she sighed. "So what's up?"

"I just got a request from Mendou Shuutarou."

An eyebrow arched. "That being?"

"You attending the first deployment voyage of the _Koishii Moroboshi_."

Silence. Reiko's gaze seemed to fade out for a moment as she considered what Lum had just told her, and then she shook her head. "Why me, Mom? Why not you or Dad?"

"We both can't get away from work and it's only for a week or two," Lum answered, she quick to note the tone of rejection in Reiko's voice. "You'll still be able to get back to Oshika in time to start classes at the Young Women's Academy. I already cleared it with Kin'ya-koochou. We'll make . . . "

"No thanks, Mom," Reiko cut her off. "Not interested."

With that, she cut the line with Tomobiki before her mother could reply, and then, with a tired sigh, she gazed at the others seated at the dining room table. "Not hungry," she said.

She headed back into her bedroom, the door slamming shut behind her. Everyone else exchanged worried looks. "Why's Reiko-chan so mad, Mama?" Katsura asked as she stared at Mal.

Mal gently breathed out. "She's upset that your uncle, aunt and cousin aren't living here anymore."

"We'll have to ask Donna and Nintaiko about Annabelle," Nokoko mused.

Mal nodded as Willow and Yuri exchanged pointed looks.

* * *

"She wasn't interested?"

Lum shook her head, her eyes glistening with tears as she deactivated the videophone. "Tcha . . . "

Ataru's hands fell on her shoulders as he leaned down to kiss her forehead. "She's mad."

"Hai, she is," the Oni breathed out, she closing her eyes. "I think deep down, she doesn't understand how we felt when we decided to come back to Tomobiki. I always felt like an uprooted plant when I was living in Oshika. I know you did, too, especially after you got over all the anger you felt at everyone here. Even Amora-chan is adjusting to living here, especially after she became friends with Sakura's daughter." Shaking her head, she added in a tired voice, "But for Reiko-chan, Oshika's the only real home she's ever known."

"Yeah, you sure got that right," he noted as he moved to gently wrap his arms around her neck, he leaning down to tenderly kiss her hair close to one of her horns. "You know, thinking about it now that it's long since done, we could've asked for Onee-chan's help when we had to deal with Lara. Any of Onee-chan's schoolmates could've psi-scanned Lara to find out what happened to Nassur and Benten. We could've even tried to ask Nicole to help out; I'm sure Onee-sama . . . " -- that was the common nickname applied to the ancient Crystal Palace, she currently anchored in an arm of Onogawa Bay close to the Moroboshis' former home, which served as the home of Moroboshi Nokoko's best friend, Nicole McTavish, and her family -- "Wouldn't have minded pitching in to help. If we did that, Aiotoga would be back together with her true family now."

"Tcha . . . " she whispered as she closed her eyes. "Still, after Nassur-chan and Benten started to contact me, I just . . .!" A shake of her head. "Oh, Lyna! It was just like how I acted before Icarus and everything started to go crazy!" Lowering her head, she moved to bury her tearing eyes into his shirt sleeve. "We acted -- **I** acted! -- like Nokoko, Mal, the others -- even Reiko! -- didn't exist!"

"I fell right into that same trap," he admitted, his own eyes glistening with shame. "Heck, if it really wasn't for me, we wouldn't have had Onee-chan and the others living beside us in the first place. If it wasn't for me, we wouldn't have had Reiko-chan living with us, being there when Koishii . . . "

Silence fell as they took time to vent their grief and shame over the things they did -- and worse, what they DIDN'T do -- in the recent matter concerning the late Urusian ambassador to Earth.

* * *

Unseen by either of them, a tomboyish brown-haired woman with caramel eyes behind stylish reading glasses was standing outside the door of Ataru's study in the basement of the Moroboshis' Tomobiki home. Taking a deep breath as she re-ran through what she overheard her future in-laws just admit, Fujisawa Mina turned to head back upstairs to re-enter the kitchen to monitor the pot of miso soup she had been making for the family before the elder Moroboshis would go off to work and Amora would head off to school.

And speaking of which . . .

"Mina-neechan?"

Mina turned to see Amora, she dressed in presentable clothes for a day of classes at Onigakkou Elementary School, standing at the doorway to the kitchen. "What is it, Amora-chan?"

"Why are Dad and Mom upset?" the younger girl asked.

Mina's sharp eye was quick to detect the flicker of a luminescent pink glittering across Amora's chocolate brown eyes. _Empathy for sure. Much greater than what would be normal for a Sagussan, I think_, she mused to herself before walking over to the water kettle to prepare some cocoa for the younger girl. "They're just remembering some bad things concerning the time they had to fight that evil woman who had you and the others kidnapped from school, Amora-chan."

"But she's dead," Amora said as she made a face. "Didn't Auntie Dakejinzou kill her . . .?"

Mina gave Amora a knowing look. "You're a little too young to talk about something as serious as _that_, Amora-chan," she tenderly scolded with a wagging finger, and then she moved to dump a packet of cocoa powder into a mug. There, she paused as she considered what else to say to the younger girl.

Unlike those of Amora's generation, Mina did know a lot of things about the people whose spirits had possessed Lum in a successful attempt to expose Skelad Lara for the monster she truthfully was. Part of that knowledge directly pertained to the real ancestry of the young girl currently living in the house behind the Moroboshi family with the woman who was both a school nurse and the crown princess of an alien kingdom many light-years away. Sadly, THAT topic was, as far as Mina understood the matter, still verboten when it came to speaking of it in the open around any of Miyake Junba's friends, even Moroboshi Amora. Still, Amora deserved to know some things since it was haunting her parents' thoughts. Not to mention how much it hurt Amora's step-sister, the woman Mina herself now loved with every fibre of her very being. So . . .

"Amora-chan, your parents knew two very nice and brave people who were also very good friends to your Aunt Dakejinzou and many others here in Tomobiki, including Junba-chan's mother," Mina began. "They both disappeared many years ago, sometime after you were born in fact." A pause. "Your parents believed Skelad Lara knew something about what ultimately happened to them. But in their determination to deal with Skelad after they came to realize that she wanted to kill everyone living on Sagussa, they never took the chance to call on people who could've made their task a lot easier in the long run. Your Aunt Nokoko and Aunt Mal, not to mention the others in their school and McTavish-san, too." A deep breath. "And in their rush to come back down here and deal with Skelad, they forgot to take Rei-chan's feelings into consideration."

Amora took a moment to consider that point, and then she stared once more at Mina. "Is it because of Belle-neechan leaving her moms without telling Reiko-neechan where she was going?" she asked.

Mina nodded, though deep inside, she was seething with outrage over what Miyake Annabelle had done to Moroboshi Reiko. It was bad enough that Mina herself had been forced away from her best friend when they were in the last year at the Ishinomaki Girls Primary Academy, but to have Annabelle -- who had known Reiko even longer than Mina did! -- vanish like that just as the whole mess with Skelad started up . . .?!

_I swear, if I ever see Belle anytime soon, I'll literally rip a strip right off her hide, even if she HAS Nendo-kata powers!_ Mina thundered to herself before she took a deep breath to calm herself down and not make Amora even more upset over what was happening around her. "That was the other part of it," she said as the kettle began to whistle. Waiting for it to boil over, she unplugged it and poured the water into the mug of cocoa, and then she moved to stir it before getting some marshmallows from the refrigerator.

"Will we have to move back to Oshika?" Amora asked.

Mina blinked as she considered that question, and then she shrugged. "I think that's what Rei-chan would definitely like to see happen," she mused before turning around to hand the mug to Amora. "But your parents have jobs here and they don't want to depend on your great-grandmother's money to earn a livelihood, for themselves and for you, too. So they'll probably stay here. But if I were them, I'd move real quick to make it clear that they haven't decided to just leave Rei-chan in the dust." She winked at Amora. "When she was your age, Rei-chan's temper was a pretty frightening thing to watch, Amora-chan. Now that she's got a lot of years under her belt, I wouldn't want to be on the same PLANET as she is when gets mad!"

Amora giggled before she took a sip of her cocoa. "Tell me about it!"

Both girls laughed.

* * *

"Willow . . . "

"Hmmm . . .? What is it, Hiromi?"

"Is that what I think it is?"

Willow blinked confusedly, and then she turned to see where her fiancée was currently pointing. Both were riding a local commuter train on the Ishinomaki line which connected that city with Onogawa, the usual place students attending the various Ishinomaki Women's Schools went to connect to rail transport leading to the rest of Japan. They had just passed under a tunnel bored into the eastern slopes of Maki-yama, emerging on the northern side near Owada village, where the line took a gentle westerly turn leading into Rikuzen-Inai station, the last stop before crossing the Shinkitakami River and entering downtown Ishinomaki.

To the train's southwest, in a gentle valley leading up to the local Buddhist shrine located near the peak of Maki-yama, there stood a building shaped almost like a miniature version of India's famed Taj Mahal, though it didn't have prayer minaret towers at the corner and it had one entrance pathway leading from its front doors, past twin sets of seven humanoid statues and an arched gateway with two more statues standing in front of it on both sides of the path, down to a road paralleling the tracks on the west side into Owada. Staring at it briefly before it disappeared behind the forest of trees cloaking Maki-yama, Willow gasped. "That was a Noukiite shrine! Tcha! What's one of THEM doing HERE?!"

"Let's find out," Hiromi proposed as the conductor's voice echoed over the speakers in the car, he announcing their impending arrival in Rikuzen-Inai.

As soon as the train stopped, the couple disembarked and passed through the gates. Once clear of the station, Willow shifted herself behind Hiromi, her hands slipping under the latter's armpits so she could boost her fiancée into the air as they soared towards Maki-yama. Minutes later, both landed on the pathway south of the railway tunnel portal. Shaking her arms to ensure they didn't cramp up -- much that she loved to fly around with her fiancée in her embrace, Willow hadn't yet developed enough physical strength to carry Hiromi over long distances in comfort -- the Oni led her Terran companion towards the shrine.

The entrance was well-marked: two nukhak cut out of pure marble stood before an archway-like gate decorated with alien dragon motifs, two of them surrounding the central sigil of the flag of the Noukiite Dominion at its peak. Underneath that sigil, written in flowing native script, was the temple's title.

"'Heaven's Gate Temple,'" Willow translated before she brought herself to attention. Arching her head back with her eyes closed, she clapped her hands over her face, and then she bowed her head as she intoned the ritual prayer a parishioner of the Noukiite faith always said on entering a strange temple's grounds.

Hiromi remained respectfully silent as she followed her fiancée past the gate. Stopping parallel to each set of statues, Willow brought herself to attention, clapped her hands, and then bowed as she prayed. Glancing at the statues to either side of her, each a twin to the one immediately across from it, Hiromi soon realised these were physical representations of the Seven Deadly Enemies of All, the devil-spirits priests of the Noukiite native faith railed against at every sermon they gave.

Once the final set of prayers were done, Willow moved to ascend the stairs leading to the front door of the temple hall. Turning to follow her, Hiromi gasped on seeing a woman in her early twenties, she dressed in fine white and jade green, awaiting them by the doors. Wavy silver-blonde hair that stretched to her waist framed a classically sculptured Noukiite face with a crow's feet of head ridges, the face itself pierced by deep golden eyes and decorated by the silver dots marking her as K'et'hu. Before she could ask herself how the Noukiite had been able to step out of the temple without their noticing, Hiromi gaped as Willow shrieked out in delight before she soared up to embrace the latter. "Niap'yeng!"

The priestess laughed as Willow nearly knocked her over, she giving the Oni kisses on both cheeks. "Hello, Aya!" she spoke out in accented but well-pronounced Japanese. "What brings you around here today?!"

"What are YOU doing HERE?!" Willow demanded. "I thought you'd still be at the seminary at Kuchch'ek!"

"I was anointed last year, then sent here to establish the temple," the priestess explained before her eyes turned to gaze on Hiromi, who had come up the stairs to join them. "Oh, excuse me!" she apologized before giving the Japanese girl a respectful bow. "Heaven's blessings on you, Fujino Hiromi. Welcome to Heaven's Gate Temple. I'm K'e-Nuk Yeho-Niap'yeng, the priestess of the temple."

Hiromi blinked, and then she nodded. "I'm pleased to meet you, Sister Niap'yeng," she returned the greeting, and then she gave Willow a look. "Former girlfriend you forgot to tell me about, Aya-chan?"

Willow gasped on hearing Hiromi call her by her baptized name -- the Terran only did that when she was VERY upset at her fiancée -- and then she rapidly shook her head as she waved the raven-haired girl off. Hearing that question, Niap'yeng laughed as she clapped her hands. "Oh, please, Hiromi-san!" she gently scolded the Terran. "There was nothing at all improper between Aya and myself when she studied on Noukiios. I was her language tutor; we were both living in Resuk at the time."

"I wrote to her when you tagged my horns and proposed to me," Willow added, and then she stared knowingly at Niap'yeng. "By the way, Nia, you STILL haven't sent me a promise necklace!"

The priestess winked. "Fortunately, I have one inside for the both of you."

Willow and Hiromi exchanged a look, and then they broke out in laughter.

* * *

"It saddens me to hear that, Lum-san."

Lum took in a deep breath, and then she exhaled before staring at her videophone screen; she was relaxing in her private office at Tomobiki High School. "I suppose given all the mistakes we made when the whole thing with Lara started up, Shuutarou, it's to be expected. Reiko-chan's never had much cause to like anyone Darling and I interacted with here in Tomobiki. In a way, it's the same distaste the Sagussans once demonstrated to all of you, just magnified and tinted with her own world-view."

"Which condemns us to being reborn as dogs after facing King Muchach's judgement when we die," Mendou Shuutarou concluded. The commander in the United Nations Defence Force was transmitting to his former classmate from his cabin aboard the U.D.F.S. _Koishii Moroboshi_, it currently in orbit over Tokyo.

Lum's eyebrow arched. "You've learned some things."

"Several of my classmates from the Defence Force Academy were members of the Freedom Five-Hundred Clans, Lum-san," Mendou explained. "One of them, Ch'uchrakch'ut'a Yut'uch, is a shipmate; he currently serves as the combat information officer. He's taught me many things about Reiko-san's people." A pause, and then he added, "As a matter of fact, he was hoping for the chance to meet her when she came aboard."

"When will you have to tell Sunda about it?"

Mendou took a moment to consider what to say. "I don't have to tell the captain about this right away, Lum-san," he admitted. _Koishii Moroboshi_ and her crew, one-third of which presently were Terran personnel from a dozen navies, including the Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force, had been dispatched to Earth in the wake of the Skelad Scandal in a drive to demonstrate the Urusians' better sides to their new allies, much like the R.S.S. _Hasei'cha_ had done in the weeks prior to Sagussa's official "coming out" back in the summer of 1984. Currently, the battlewagon's captain, Hoth Sunda, was hosting the United Nations' Secretary-General, Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt, and many national heads-of-state and heads-of-government in a detailed show-and-tell tour of the last Kashin-class warship built for the Urusian Defence Force. "We won't be scheduled to depart for border patrol near Tamamono for another week or so."

Lum nodded. "Well, that does give us some time . . . "

* * *

"I am saddened to hear P'yeknu is feeling this way towards her parents."

Willow and Hiromi were enjoying tea with Niap'yeng. "She's been moping about her parents moving back to Tomobiki ever since we heard that bitch Skelad kidnapped Reiko's sister and her friends just to force Reiko's mom to become Uru's Empress," the Terran said, her voice a little raspy after taking a sip of the red pepper tea her fiancée and friend were drinking. Much that she was striving to do her best to accept how a relationship with Willow would impact her life, there were still things Hiromi needed to get used to. The spicy cuisine being one of them. "Then you tack on what Belle did to her . . . "

Niap'yeng blinked. "Is there any indication as to why Annabelle left, Aya?"

"None," Willow replied. "She got her high school diploma when we graduated, then left Oshika the very next day. It was so sudden, it took us ALL by surprise. Belle didn't tell any of us anything. Weird!"

The priestess considered that for a moment. "Well, perhaps I can prevail on the noble folk of the Special Committee on Alien Activities to help try to trace Annabelle down," she noted before sipping her cup of tea. "If P'yeknu values Annabelle's friendship highly, having communications restored between them would do P'yeknu wonders. Granted, I'm not like a faith-healer I know who was also a Lost Star, Doctor K'u-Yi Yech'a-Tech, but I do understand things concerning matters of this nature." A pause, and then she took a deep breath. "But that is for the future. Dealing with P'yeknu's current mood is a greater priority."

"That might be a bit hard, Nia," Willow warned. "Don't forget, Reiko hasn't had to deal with a single Noukiite since the day you were all pulled out of the castle and sent to Magairu. Even if both of you were Lost Stars, meeting up with you again might not do much. I've never told her about our meeting each other when I was going to middle school; it never came up in conversation. You think Reiko would open up to you?"

"I must try," Niap'yeng said. "P'yeknu is one of us, Aya. Long before she became 'Moroboshi Reiko,' she was Subject 494 of the Project, just like I was Subject 309, Hanak'at' was Subject 16 and K'yechsungi was Subject 229 . . .!" Her voice was cut off as a geyser of tea exploded from Willow's mouth. "What?!"

"**_K'YECHSUNGI?!_**" the Oni shrieked. "**_WHY ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT HER?!_**"

Niap'yeng was nonplussed. "She's my friend, Aya. Why shouldn't I talk about her?"

Hearing the casual way the priestess was talking about her sister Lost Star, Willow's eyes went as wide as saucers, a typhoon of pure terror surging through her heart. "Is s-she here on E-earth . . .?"

"Of course she is . . . "

"**_WHAT?!_**" Willow started yanking on her hair. "**_NIA, ARE YOU CRAZY?!_**"

"WHAT?!" Hiromi demanded as she looked at her fiancée. "Who's this K'ye- . . .?!"

A cold wind seemed to blow past her. "We are K'yechsungi."

Willow nearly went stark-white before she slowly turned around to stare at the person who had just spoken out. Hiromi turned to see a blue-eyed Noukiite woman standing at the doorway to Niap'yeng's private apartment, she dressed in a form-fitting blue-and-silver sleeveless jumpsuit, her cleavage exposed to her navel thanks to a deep V-cut in the top. And while her hair was a glossy raven black and extended past her shoulder, centre-parted as it was with most Noukiites thanks to their forehead ridges, it was clearly obvious this girl was NO normal Noukiite. After all, Noukiites didn't have fanged canine teeth a vampire would admire, much less elongated elfin-like ears that wouldn't be out of place on the head of Shogai Dakejinzou.

Staring at this woman, Hiromi felt her heart freeze as K'yechsungi's gaze seemed to fix on her for a moment. It was no peaceful stare, the native of Ise then realised as the chill that just seized her heart spread all over her body. It was the stare of a hunter, a killer, a bird of prey who would not stop until she obtained what she wanted -- and she cared not a whit as to how she would obtain it.

If there was a Noukiite version of the Angel of Death, K'yechsungi was clearly Her Mortal Avatar.

Willow gulped as she moved to faintly wave at the newcomer. "Hey, K'yech. You're looking well."

K'yechsungi blinked, and then she gazed briefly at the Oni before she stared at Niap'yeng. "We will be away for a while exploring, Niap'yeng. Please inform Cha-yu if she inquires about us."

And with that, she walked out. Hiromi watched her go, and then she stared quizzically at her host. "What's with the 'we' she used? I know Noukiite caste tattoos and she wasn't royalty."

"She's got three souls stuck in her head."

Hiromi blinked several times before she stared at Willow. "How did THAT happen?"

"The Masters of Noukiios wished to create a soul-eater, a being who could suck out the living spirit of anyone she was sent to kill," Niap'yeng explained. "In K'yechsungi, they succeeded."

The Terran took that in, and then she breathed out. "Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiight . . . "

* * *

Having shape-shifted into her winged succubus-like form, K'yechsungi had taken to the air, she soaring over Maki-yama as she turned towards the general direction of Oshika. Already, the sin-eater's senses were reaching out from every point in her body into the Eternal -- what Sagussans called "Te'a" and Aimaiyites the "Ehn" -- they touching the many interesting mystical and psionic nexi within a fifty kilometre range of her. Of course, the greatest single source of power was the Crystal Palace currently sitting in an arm of Onogawa Bay, Her forest of diamond meson spires brightly sparkling thanks to the late morning sun. Thankfully, the Most Venerable One in the Bay didn't project Herself fully throughout the Eternal, so K'yechsungi didn't have to waste power in raising her own mental shields so she wouldn't be overwhelmed by Her Power. Thus, she was able to better concentrate herself on the lesser beings she could sense close to the Most Venerable One . . .

Including three walking down the road towards the Moroboshi home right now.

K'yechsungi blinked as her eyes focused on them, they walking line-abreast down the seashore lane. One was young and clearly Oni-Urusian, though his soul did possess a curious tincture to it, very much like how Willow's soul had felt to her. The second was Noukiite, though there was a powerful alien slant to him. And he was simply ANCIENT in comparison to the others. Part-Vosian? Part-Zephyrite, perhaps? And the third was Terran, a woman P'yeknu's age in fact. So what were these three doing in Oshika . . .?

Soaring down, she moved to get closer to them. Before she could land and morph back into her normal form, the ancient one tensed as he brought up a plain ironwood cane. With a flick of his thumb, the cane's top was lifted clear, exposing the glimmering metal of a well-forged sword. Before K'yechsungi could react, he spun around, drawing out his blade to point its tip at her throat. The movement was so sudden, the Oni and the Terran had staggered back from their companion, they clearly confused as to what would set him off.

* * *

In all his life, Ik'a had to confess, he had NEVER sensed someone quite like THIS!

THREE souls bound together in one single being, all linked together in a way which would make a pe'cha bond, a recognition bond or even a Sagussan-style bonding look incomplete in comparison.

Granted, all the souls did sense as being pure Noukiite.

Yet HOW . . .?!

"Who are you?" he quietly demanded as he slowly moved on the woman before him.

"Ojii-san, stop!"

Ik'a paused, his head snapping towards Shoono Asuza. "Child . . .?"

"That's Eyu-Teo Yecho-K'yechsungi," Asuza said. "She's one of the Lost Stars!"

K'yechsungi blinked on hearing the Terran's words, and then she said, "You know of us?"

"Your reputation, Lady K'yechsungi, is quite known on Noukiios," Ch'uchrakch'ut'a Yut'uch spoke up, and then he stared at Ik'a. "Please, Venerable Neuch'ahi, she will not hurt you, I think."

Silence fell Ik'a seemed to think about it for a moment, and then he nodded, his sword returning to its place in his cane before he relaxed, a friendly smile crossing his face. On hearing his nickname, K'yechsungi was stunned silent. "Neuch'ahi . . .?" she gasped. Then, as her wings vanished into her back, she dropped to one knee before him, she averting her eyes from the Venerable One's face. "We ask your forgiveness, Venerable. It was not our intention to make you assume we would seek battle with you."

A hearty laugh escaped him. "Now that my young musician companion has told me who you are, Lady K'yechsungi, be assured you have nothing at all to fear from me," Ik'a declared. "The tales of your many fights against the bandits in the mountains of Taktek near Ch'uonech has been all over the news-nets, even in the quiet part of Noukiyek where I currently reside." He nodded in the direction of the Moroboshi home. "I assume you're here to keep watch over the Empress' Daughter from whatever place you currently live in. I hope you wouldn't mind our imposing on your patrol territory so we could call upon her today."

K'yechsungi's eyebrow arched as she stared at him for a moment, and then she stood up to approach him. "'Empress' Daughter?!'" she quoted him. "Of whom do you speak, Venerable? We know of no such person."

"He's speaking of Moroboshi Reiko-san, K'yechsungi-san," Asuza explained.

K'yechsungi blinked. "P'yeknu? She is not related to any empress we are aware of. Unless you submit to the belief that P'yeknu's adopted mother Lum is the Empress of the World of Holy Reincarnation . . . "

"She is that," Ik'a acknowledged, and then a tired look crossed his face. "But the Lady P'yeknu's REAL mother is none other than the T'yekhek Empress, whom I saved from the assassins many years ago."

Stunned silence fell over the scene as the sin-eater took that in. "Wh-what . . .?!" she sputtered. "What is this you speak of, Venerable?!" she demanded. "Everyone knows the dog people slew the T'yekhek Empress prior to their forcing her husband off the throne! How could P'yeknu be the Empress' child?! All of the Empress' children -- the Kyaksai Emperor and his brothers and sisters -- they were killed by the dog people during the pogroms that nearly eliminated all the Eip'ihu from Noukiios!"

"What **I'd** like to know is how in Heaven's name you know **I'm** related to her!"

Yut'uch's shocked gasp caused Ik'a, Asuza and K'yechsungi to spin around just as an invisible fist grabbed him by the waist and catapulted him against a nearby stone wall. They turned to gaze in the general direction of the Moroboshi home to see a VERY angry Moroboshi Reiko standing by the front gate, her eyes glowing as she moved to put the telekinetic squeeze on the visiting Oni. Seeing that -- and remembering what she had heard over the years concerning the Noukiite-born adopted daughter of Moroboshi Ataru and his wife -- Asuza cried out, "Reiko-san, STOP! Put him down! He doesn't want to hurt you! PUT HIM DOWN!"

Reiko was distracted enough to allow the telekinetic grip holding Yut'uch in place to fade, making him fall face-first into the ground. Staring quizzically at Asuza for a moment, she turned back to the Oni, her legs propelling her towards him. K'yechsungi bolted over to block her path. "P'yeknu, STOP!"

Reiko glared at her, her eyes starting to glow ominously as she prepared to throw her sister Lost Star clear so she could press on her interrogation of Yut'uch. Before she could telekinetically reach out to toss K'yechsungi aside, the latter grabbed the former's hand and yanked it up to her face, pressing the fingertips into the mind-meld points on her skin. Before Reiko could realise what was happening, K'yechsungi dropped her mind-shields, allowing her thoughts and feelings to flow like a tsunami into her sister Lost Star's mind.

A gargled croak escaped Reiko as images she had for years banished to the darkest pit of her memory came surging back forth again. The castle of the Masters of Noukiios near Hakaech. The storm of mind-training she had been forced to endure for as long as she could remember. The times she had been taken out of suspension storage to test her growing metahuman powers, her telekinesis, telepathy and empathy. The time she was forced to perform the Hechye Tat' with Subject 153 -- No! She was Ae-K'ech Yecho-Euk now! -- for two of the men who ran the project. Then the silence before she woke up in her capsule in Tomobiki . . .

Different memories now. The same castle near Hakaech. The same mind-training, but added to that pain when three separate consciences -- from where, she never had any idea -- were forced into her mind. The testing, both physical and psychological, to hone her into the perfect human killing machine. The final shattering of the original soul of the girl then just known as Subject 229. Several instances where she was made to do the Hechye Tat', normally in the company of Subject 16, born as Eyu-Teo Yeho-Hanak'at'. Then the mass awakening in the castle, the image of a smiling Shogai Dakejinzou and Miyake Shinobu flashing in her mind. The voyage to the Abbey of Lyna on Magairu, where she remained alone until the day her friend's relatives came to retrieve their daughter. And got something more.

The day when Subject 229 became Eyu-Teo Yecho-K'yechsungi.

K'yechsungi's fingers tightened against Reiko's as the mind-meld faded, she moving to keep the other woman's hand close to her. "You were the one who saved us all, P'yeknu."

"K'yech," Reiko breathed out. "What are you doing here?"

"Protecting you from those who would object to you living your own life, of course. Just as we have done for others back in Taktek." K'yechsungi grinned as she stared at Ik'a. "And just as the Venerable One there protected the poor and destitute throughout the Occupation Period." She canted her head. "But we still do not understand how is it that P'yeknu could be related to the T'yekhek Empress!"

"She's one of my genetic mothers, K'yech."

K'yechsungi turned back to Reiko. "'One of' . . .?! P'yeknu, we don't understand . . .!"

"I'm a bioroid, K'yech."

Silence fell as the sin-eater tried to absorb that.

* * *

"So let me try to recap," Asuza breathed out as everyone relaxed in the living room of the Moroboshi home later. "You actually have TWO mothers and TEN fathers, Reiko-san?! Outside of your adopted parents?!"

"That's right," Reiko acknowledged that with a nod before she moved to sip her coffee. Atop the visitors just in from Noukiios and K'yechsungi, listening in to this conversation was Moroboshi Mal and hers and Nokoko's younger daughter, Haruka. The six year old -- a green-haired, brown-eyed, Oni girl who looked as if she could be a more tomboyish Mal -- was currently standing on the couch beside K'yechsungi, she intently examining the sin-eater's very strange ears, something she didn't expect to see on a Noukiite. "I don't know who it was who came up with the idea of mixing in the DNA of twelve of Noukiios' greatest heroes, emperors and sages to make me, but they did. That's part of the reason I've never thought about going back to Noukiios ever since my parents adopted me. If you've lived there for some time, Asuza-san, you . . . "

"Know grave-robbing is considered a capital crime," Asuza finished with a smile.

"It still would not change our opinions about you, P'yeknu," K'yechsungi noted.

"I had other reasons for not going back, K'yech."

"Those other reasons concerning your sister, Koishii."

Reiko's eyes seemed to harden for a moment as she glared at Yut'uch. "Yes, you could say that," she evenly declared. "I don't know what in Heaven's name persuaded Dad and Mom to agree to Grandpa Invader's stupid idea to name that ship after my sister in the first place. Koishii-chan's death hurt us all; it'll even hurt Amora-chan the day she learns the whole truth of the battle between Henry and Cassandra. And to name a warship after a baby who died after only living for five days . . .!" She stopped on seeing the visiting Urusian officer pale in shock. "What?! What's wrong?!" she demanded.

"I . . .!" Yut'uch sputtered out before he strove to get control over himself. "I'm sorry!" he apologised. "Forgive me, Lady P'yeknu, but I always heard it was a miscarriage . . .!"

"No," Reiko flatly said. "It wasn't."

The tapping of Ik'a's cane-sword on the coffee table caught everyone's attention. "I'm more than sure the Ch'uoeuk was kind and understanding to the newborn one's soul when it came her time to face him at the Two Portals," the ancient warrior intoned respectfully. "None the less, regardless of HOW you came into this life, Lady P'yeknu, the fact that you are the T'yekhek Empress' child is plain for all to see."

"May I ask a question?" Mal wondered as she stepped into the living room. As everyone turned to her, she stared at Yut'uch. "How exactly did you know that Reiko-chan's real mother is still alive, Yut'uch-san?"

"Because there was no body to bury, Venerable Mal," the Oni answered. "My ancestors were footmen to the Seq House." He stared at Reiko and K'yechsungi. "As you both know, Ladies, the Seqs held control over the Governor-General's office throughout the Occupation period. The information concerning the fact the T'yekhek Empress' body was never found was a well-kept secret from the general public, both Noukiite and Urusian commoner." A sly smile crossed his face. "But it was no secret from my ancestors. And they were willing to give up that information to the Provisional People's Congress when it was established in 4925. But when we eventually realised what the Venerable Neuch'ahi had done for the Empress, we felt it simply best to leave things be." He gazed knowingly at Ik'a. "If the chance came for the Venerable to help the Empress return to Noukiios, he would take it. We would help him, of course, but it would always depend on him."

Asuza stared at him. "Then why come see him at the palace now, Yut'uch-san?"

The Oni sighed. "Noukiios needs the Empress back, Shoono-san. The Eo are rising again."

Silence.

"How is that possible?" Reiko demanded.

"From whence do they come?" K'yechsungi added.

"Who are the Eo?!" Haruka asked.

Eyes locked on the young girl, and then Reiko reached over to draw her cousin onto her lap. "They were pirates from Uru's old colonies during the Imperial Age, Haruka-chan," she explained. "They didn't want to live under the control of the Imperial Round, so they moved to Machibusu to set up a breakaway state of their own. It wasn't too far from there to Noukiios, not to mention Uru and her established colonies, so they started to prey on our ships as well as going after Urusian, Zephyrite, Seifukusu and Fukunokami shipping. It got so bad that one of my fathers, the Suhek Emperor, had to order them to be eliminated. And one of my _other_ fathers, Admiral Ye-Yi Chusu-Hachhich, was the leader of the Noukiite forces sent out to deal with the Eo. He died fighting them in the battle that eventually broke the Eo once and for all."

"Not an auspicious first contact between Urusian and Noukiite," Asuza noted.

"Agreed," Reiko affirmed with a nod, and then she turned to Ik'a. "So if Mama's still alive, where is she, sir? It's been over three hundred years since she vanished from Yekk'eng-ak. Where . . .?"

"The Yekk'ap', Lady P'yeknu," Yut'uch answered on his behalf.

Silence fell.

"What is this Yekk'ap'?" Mal asked.

"The Dragon's Breath," the Oni explained. "Spiritually, it's seen as the living expression of an agent of the Noukiite version of God, Venerable Mal. In reality, from what few studies have been done on it over the years, it's a shifting time-space nexus. It appears and disappears randomly; no one has ever tried to time its appearances since they're so rare. According to legend, it's said the Ch'uoeuk himself vanished into the Yekk'ap' when he felt his time ruling Ait'uch Nehech was over. It was from there that he eventually ascended to the Two Portals and became the servant of the Lord of Heaven, judging souls as they came before him from the Pool of Reincarnation. Yet, as to what really lies within the Yekk'ap' itself . . . "

He gave them a shrug. "In the Yekk'ap', one can live," Ik'a noted as he sat back in his chair.

"Ojii-san?" Asuza whispered as she stared at him with concern.

"It was the only chance I felt the Noble One could have when she was forced to flee Yekk'eng-ak," Ik'a explained. "Those who wanted her dead wouldn't give up, no matter how many of them I killed. Even if I had, by some Heaven-sent miracle, found some way to expose what the Urusian Imperials were ultimately doing to us, it would have still been too late to save Noukiios; the corruption that had descended all over the planet was just too great even for a strong Emperor or Empress to finally deal with." Tears appeared through his closed eyelids. "It was so easy for me to sense how those animals looked at the Noble One. She was not a living, thinking being to them. She was an animal, a creature that had to be put down like a rabid dog. When I fought them, whatever faith I might have had concerning the nobility of life died that day as well." His free hand clenched as he added in a hiss, "But it didn't have to die for her."

"Then there is no choice."

Eyes locked on Mal. "Aunt Mal?" Reiko probed.

The Nendo-kata-turned-Oni walked over to stare down at Ik'a. "Your duty to your Empress is not yet fully done, good warrior. You must return to the Yekk'ap' and return Reiko-chan's mother back to where she belongs." She looked over her shoulder at her niece. "And you have to help him do this, Reiko-chan. Even if the Empress never physically gave birth to you, you ARE, in part, her daughter. You owe it to her." She grinned. "After all, if you keep calling her 'Mama' in your dreams, you have to know the truth."

Reiko felt her cheeks redden. "You're spying on my dreams, Aunt Mal?"

"It's hard for Beloved and I to ignore them when you keep calling out 'Mama' all the time. And you always address Sister as 'Mom,' not 'Mama,'" Mal replied as Asuza, Yut'uch and Haruka began to giggle. Even K'yechsungi was smiling at this revelation. "Still, there is one thing I would like to ask," Mal continued. "Who is this 'Marina' you keep speaking of when you speak of your mother?"

Yut'uch and K'yechsungi blinked, flashes of recognition dawning in their eyes. "We have heard that name before, but we cannot recall when and in what context we did hear it," the latter admitted. "Yut'uch?"

"I remember hearing that name before, but I can't pinpoint it, either," the former stated.

"What if I told you her full name?"

Eyes locked on Reiko. "Whom do you speak of, Lady?" Ik'a asked.

"Muzuka Marina of Fukunokami, also known as Marina of Dysos," Reiko replied.

As Yut'uch's and K'yechsungi's jaws dropped in shocked disbelief, Asuza blinked in confusion and Ik'a's eyebrow arched in curiosity, Reiko added, "The one person who actually got away from Nassur."

* * *

_A sneeze. "Damn! Who's talking about me?!"_

_Groaning, Marina wiped her nose clear of the loose mucus that escaped her, and then she picked up the beautiful taiken-shaped blade before she began her daily sword drill. Unlike the more bulky, scimitar-like weapons commonly preferred by Yehisrites, to say anything of the chains Fukunokami traditionally liked to fight with, the eunuch's sword that had been presented to her by Nukyek after they became pe'cha seemed sensuous in her katana-like leanness. She was still perhaps one of the deadliest weapons ever made by mortals; local legend throughout the galaxy had long declared that a stone-sober Ip'ihu warrior had been able to cleave the lim'l of an equally sober Yehisrite executioner in half with one sweep of his sword._

_Then again, was it really so surprising?_

_The average Yehisrite sword took a year at the most to properly forge._

_A Noukiite seucheuchet' like Aeyek-hup'uk was usually FORTY years in the making._

_Drawing Aeyek from her scabbard, Marina saluted her chosen target -- a simple tree denuded of branches and leaves in previous practices -- and then she began her kata. As she continued, the door to the small hut nearby opened to reveal Nukyek, she dressed in the clothes she had worn when she entered the Dragon's Breath ages ago (though for the Noukiite empress, time simply had no meaning here), the same commoner's clothes she had been hastily dressed in by the Venerable Neuch'ahi after she had escaped from Suchkyuk. Taking her usual seat on a fallen log so she could watch her champion prepare herself, Nukyek could only smile in contentment. While part of her wanted to return home -- hearing of all the horrors her people had been subjected to over the last three centuries had made her weep -- the other part of her was simply content to remain in this place with Marina at her side, unbothered by the outside Universe, friends bound together for all time._

_A shudder quaked her before she shook her head. No! That was the coward's way out! If she ever did die and wound up facing the Ch'uoeuk at the Two Portals, he would be right in damning her to the lowest level of the Ten Orders for ignoring her responsibilities to her people, even if they didn't realise the level of malaise their lives had descended into. She HAD to go back! She HAD to remind them of what they could have if they only reached forth to seize it with their own hands. It was what the Fates had always wanted for her people. Why in the name of Heaven didn't more of them ever realise that in all their lives?_

_"Hey."_

_Nukyek jolted, and then she looked up to see Marina standing before her, a knowing smile on her face as she reached down to squeeze her companion's shoulder in understanding. "Part of me hopes this will last forever," she admitted as she looked into those auburn eyes. "Part of me just wants to go back home."_

_"I know," the hybrid whispered before she leaned down to kiss the Noukiite's forehead ridge._

_With that, she returned back to her sword drill._

* * *

"Energize."

"Aye, sir."

The technician tapped controls on the console before him. Within the teleportation chamber, light sparkled into existence as an inter-dimensional gateway was opened to Earth below. In seconds, the light vanished, freeing the people just whisked in from Oshika. Seeing who was there, Mendou Shuutarou smiled as he stepped out of the control chamber. "It's good to see you all again," he greeted Yuri, Willow and Hiromi, remembering them from the battle in the Tokyo docklands against Skelad Lara weeks before. He then blinked on noting the fourth woman present, she not familiar to him. "Er, Aya-san, who . . .?"

Willow quickly did introductions for Shoono Asuza. Hearing her family name, Mendou smiled as he bowed graciously to her. "I know of your parents, Asuza-san. They're from Tsuruoka, are they not?"

"Last I heard of them, Mendou-chuusa," Asuza replied as she returned his bow. "I haven't spoken to them for the past four years." She shrugged before she quietly added, "You ultimately found the strength within yourself to honour your family's desires when you married and helped give birth to your son even when your heart often felt like doing otherwise. It's a strength I've yet to find within myself."

The scion of Japan's richest family nodded understandingly. He knew Shoono Asuza had two brothers, Yasushi and Motomu, both of who would inherit joint control over their family's considerable clothing empire. Asuza's fate in life had been -- up until the point she "volunteered" to spend some years on Sagussa; Mendou still didn't know how she had got away with leaving Earth for THAT planet in particular -- to eventually marry into an equally rich family to forge a business alliance on behalf of her parents, Kikuo and Teruko.

"Perhaps it's a different strength that you're actually looking for, Asuza-san," he advised her.

"Commander, the next party's ready to come up," the technician reminded him.

"Thank you, Chief," Mendou called back as he beckoned the party clear of the teleport pad.

The command was given again to energize the system. Four more people arrived, three women and an elderly man. To Mendou's surprise, all four were Noukiites, none of them familiar to him. Before he could ask Willow what was going on, the doors to the teleportation chamber opened to reveal Yut'uch, he in his dress uniform. He watched as his classmate from the Urusian Defence Force Academy went to his knee before the silver-haired woman in the white-and-green clothes, he taking her hand in his own to place a kiss on her fingers. "Welcome aboard the Urusian Defence Force Ship _Koishii Moroboshi_, Sister Niap'yeng. Heaven's most sincere blessings on you and your party. You honour we unworthy ones with your presence."

"And to you, good warrior, we give thanks for your welcome and greet you in Heaven's name in return," Niap'yeng responded. "Have you informed your war-leader of the need of our presence before we proceed?"

"I have, Sister. She understands."

"Very well. Lady Hanak'at'?"

The crimson-haired, blue-eyed woman in the flowing robes to Niap'yeng's right -- save for the formal occasions like this, Eyu-Teo Yeho-Hanak'at' would dress in quite revealling clothes, like her adopted sister K'yechsungi -- walked up, she bowing her head respectfully. "Your wishes, Sister?"

"You and your sister will both serve as our noble companion's hich'ek while she is here."

Hanak'at' and K'yechsungi both bowed. "As the wise sister commands," they replied.

Niap'yeng turned to smile at Ik'a. "Of course, Venerable, I will not presume to impose on you."

"I don't intend to force myself on you either, Sister," the ancient warrior said with a demure chuckle before he seemed to "look" over at Asuza. "Ah, Asucha . . . " -- like most Noukiites, Ik'a found it next to impossible to properly pronounce "z"-like sounds -- "There you are. Care to be my eyes today?"

"Hai, Ojii-san," Asuza said as she walked over to slip her arm around his, and then she moved to escort him out of the room, they following Willow, Hiromi and Yuri to the guest quarters.

"Ladies, could you clear the pad for Miss Reiko?" the technician asked.

Yut'uch stood up as the other Noukiites cleared the teleportation pad. The system was energized yet again, allowing one more person to appear. Seeing her finally appear, Mendou smiled as he moved to greet her with a formal bow. "Reiko-sa- . . . " he began before his breath caught in his throat on seeing what four days work done by Niap'yeng and Hanak'at' had done to Ataru's and Lum's adopted daughter.

Gone was the tired, depressed, lonely look that had haunted Moroboshi Reiko's face since her parents and sister had moved to Tomobiki. Gone was the cloak of disorientation and confusion that had swamped her since her mother started having dreams concerning her old combat teacher from Vos and her best friend from Fukunokami. Gone especially were the Naihu black star tattoos that had been burned into her cheeks when she had been born, marking her as a member of the ninth of the Ten Orders. Replacing them were the golden suns of a Yekhu, marking her as being at the very top of the ancient social pyramid of that particular world. Even more, she was wearing the sweeping robes of a Yekhu who had yet to take a post in the priesthood, they coloured in velvet black and glittering gold, the shades chosen to mark her adopted parents' histories, as the animals portrayed on the tunic and trousers -- Sagussan windriders and sandpanthers, Urusian tiger-cows and landsharks, they watched over by Noukiite dragons and Nendo-kata -- immediately demonstrated.

As Mendou and the technician gaped in awe at how beautiful Reiko was, Yut'uch was moving to greet her. "Heaven's most sincere blessings to you, Venerable Ye-Nehek Yesu-P'yeknu. Heart-child of the Euk Hichheksuch Seuchhoukhek, the Daite'cha Moroboshi Ataru of Sagussa, and his soul-mate, the Crown Princess Lum of the House of Redet of Uru. Blood-daughter of the T'yekhek Empress Consort of Nehech and the Venerable Ye-Hit' Yecho-Huit'ch'uk. Spirit-daughter of the Most Venerable Inuch'ech, the Most Venerable Meiyo, the Most Venerable Yap'eng, the Venerable Ip'yoch and the Venerable Ch'uhuch. Sword-daughter of the Venerable Admiral Ye-Yi Chusu-Hachhich, Conqueror of the Eo. Soul-daughter of the Great Takchyek Emperor of Nehech, the Muine Emperor of Ep'ye, the Muine Emperor of Nehech and the Suhek Emperor of Nehech."

"I thank you, Warrior Hu-Ch'uchrakch'ut'a Chuyeh-Yut'uch, for your greetings and greet you in Heaven's name in return," Reiko replied as he placed a courtly kiss on her fingers. "Now that I'm here, may I be escorted to see your ship's noble mistress and war-leader so I may greet her properly?"

"This unworthy one would be honoured to escort you to her, Venerable P'yeknu."

"So be it."

Yut'uch rose and turned, offering his arm to her. Reiko slipped her arm around his, and they walked out of the teleporter room, Hanak'at' and K'yechsungi falling in behind her. Niap'yeng watched them go, and then she turned to follow before she stopped on seeing the stunned look on Mendou Shuutarou's face. Walking over, the priestess seemed to gaze intently at him for a moment before she leaned up to tenderly kiss his cheek. Gasping, the commander spun around to stare wide-eyed at her. Grinning, Niap'yeng turned to leave. "For that time in the mountains near Hakaech, my eternal thanks, Mendou Shuutarou. Excuse me, please."

She walked out of the teleportation room. Watching her go, Mendou seemed to be gobbling like a fish trying to breathe in open air. Seeing his distress, the teleporter technician noted, "Sir, she's just like Miss Reiko." As Mendou stared confusedly at him, he added, "Hakaech is the city on Miss Reiko's home planet where the Masters of Noukiios had their operation. That priestess was a Lost Star, too."

The commander blinked as his mind absorbed that information, and then he nodded. "Oh!"

* * *

In another teleportation room aboard the Urusian battlewagon, another column of light brought two more people into existence. One of them was dressed in the simple vestments of a Buddhist monk of the Joodoshuu sect, his shaved head glistening in the lights of the teleportation room. Standing beside him was a girl dressed in a kimono, it portraying a beautiful grove of apple trees inhabited by a small pack of tigers. The lights also reflected off the glasses both people were wearing. Staring at them from her position in the technician's control station, Hoth Sunda grinned as she moved to greet them. "Welcome aboard the _Koishii Moroboshi_, Brother Kaerimiru, Miss Mina. I trust the teleportation didn't hurt either of you."

"For one who's experienced Sagussan transporter systems, Captain Sunda, it's different, but not very much so," Megane Aisuru stated as he moved to bless his host. "The Buddha's blessings onto you and your fine crew. May this ship and all of you have the spirit of life young Koishii-chan was tragically denied when the Gatherer was lost." He smiled as he added, "And I bring profound thanks from Lum-san, Ataru and both their families for your willingness to assist them in helping Mina-san get back together again with Reiko-san."

"I'm more than happy to help, sir," Sunda said with a delighted laugh. She hadn't aged much since the day she -- then serving as the executive officer of the battlewagon _Repia_ -- had born mute witness to the final incident that sparked the Imperial Counter-Revolution on Toshitto when her ship, commanded by an Imperial sympathiser named Tenwan Sakimu, engaged in a hopelessly one-sided fight over Mars with the Sagussan cruiser R.S.S. _Ossa'cha_. Her silver hair hadn't gained any grey in the temples and her face was relatively clear of laugh lines, her bright blue eyes sparkling with delight at this little game of subterfuge.

After nodding thanks to Megane, she turned to Mina. "I'll have one of the crew escort you to your quarters, Miss Mina. They're very close to Miss Reiko's, so things should go well between you two."

"Don't be so quick to promise that, Captain," Mina warned her.

Everyone laughed.

* * *

An hour later, after Sunda got the chance to meet Reiko and her party, the _Koishii Moroboshi_ soared out of Earth's gravity well, turning her bow in the direction of Urusian space. On the battlewagon's bridge, located on the underside of the main hull forward of amidships, the bridge crew remained alert as she went into warp. Mendou currently served as the officer of the watch, with Yut'uch standing beside him. "E.T.A. Toshitto outer marker in two hours mark six, Commander," the helmsman reported after taking a look on her readout. "Once we clear the Slot, it'll be a seven hour speed run to the Tamamono outer marker."

"Thank you, Pilot," Mendou replied. He ordered the duty boatswain's mate to mark the departure in the log and to contact the captain when they arrived at Toshitto. Once that was done and noted, he stared at his old classmate to restart their conversation before the ship left Earth. "You're saying that Reiko-san was a bioroid created from the genes of all those people you mentioned in the teleport room?"

"It's true, Shuutarou," Yut'uch confirmed. "It shocked the hell out of ME when P'yeknu mentioned what the Sagussans found out when they investigated her ancestry just after the Final Tag Race in Tomobiki between her father and Mrs. Lum." Like most Urusians, Yut'uch found it difficult to speak Moroboshi Ataru's given name out loud since, in the Oni dialect, "ataru" meant "sex-crazed idiot." He could have tried to say the man's name using the Noukiite transliteration, "Ch'uk," but that would have confused Mendou in the end.

"I thought that on Noukiios, tampering with a grave earned you a quick date with the firing squad," the communications officer spoke up, he glancing over from his station.

"Normally, it does, Haran. But as far as Doctor Catty -- she was the one who led the investigation -- concluded, it could be possible to obtain other genetic samples from those people, thus leaving the graves undisturbed. During the Occupation, a lot of relics belonging to those people were hidden away in temples. Even if they were trying to break the Noukiites, the Houses never elected to destroy the major temples on a wide scale. The only times they did do that was when they wanted to teach special 'lessons' to the various resistance movements (not that any of those 'lessons' ever truly worked in the long term). But people on Noukiios were forewarned ahead of time whenever those things were going to happen, so nothing really was lost." Yut'uch blinked as he considered the matter, and then he nodded. "Oh, yes, I can see how P'yeknu was created in the long term. Whoever elected to do it really was thinking ahead."

Everyone on the bridge stared at the combat information officer. "You think the Noukiites might have had some clue about Mrs. Lum's husband and his date with the Sagussans?" the sensor officer asked.

"Pretty much so," Yut'uch answered with another nod. "On Noukiios, astrology is a time-honoured art form. And the star patterns aren't really so different between Noukiios and Earth. When you consider his connections with Zephyrus through the Lady Nagaiwakai, I'm sure that . . . "

"Wait!"

Everyone snapped over to the communications station. "Report, Haran-san!" Mendou ordered.

"Signal from Toshitto, relayed from Machibusu, Commander Mendou," the communications officer spoke up. "Distress signal from the area between Machibusu and Tamamono. It's a starship registered from Shingetsu, pendant number CTU-228-I. They report being attacked by unknown fighter ships, at least a dozen of them!"

People on the bridge tensed. "It's the Ip'ihu!" the helmsman snarled. "It HAS to be!"

Grim looks flashed across many of the Urusians there. If there was one word that could send chills down the backs of any native of Uru or any of her colony worlds, it was the dreaded name of the Wolf People of Noukiios, the "outcaste" part of their society. Based on the disputed colony planets of Okusei, Tunchusei and Kurrusei, the Ip'ihu -- the blood and spirit descendants from the last major resistance force to rise up in the final years of the Nehech Dynasty to fight the Urusians, the Ch'eksung Righteous Army -- had earned a bloody and brutal yet awe-inspiring reputation for ferocity in battle. That was especially true when they engaged elements of their opposite numbers on the Urusian side of the frontier between the Union and the Dominion of Noukiios, the volunteer colonial space militias of Machibusu, Tamamono and Baiseki.

"Is there any ship close to that vessel that could render aide?" Yut'uch demanded.

"Wait one," the communications officer said as he tapped controls to send a return signal to Toshitto.

"What's going on?"

Everyone turned as Sunda stepped off the elevator that connected the bridge to the main hull. "We just got a distress signal relayed to us from near Machibusu, Captain," the communications officer stated. "It's a civilian starship, pendant number CTU-228-I. They report being attacked by at least a dozen fighter ships, type and place of origin unknown. I . . .!" He paused as a new signal came in. "Update, Captain. The ship sending the distress call is the private yacht of Miss Aruka Insa of Shingetsu."

"A relative of Ran-san?" Mendou asked on recognising the woman's house name.

"Distant relative, Shuutarou," Yut'uch reported. "And one, I think, Mrs. Rei might not approve of."

"How so?"

"Miss Insa was very pro-Imperial, Shuutarou," Sunda stated. "She's our closest equivalent to the many conservative broadcasters you have on your planet; people like Rush Limbaugh and his ilk. Of course, in her eyes, any restored Imperium would have the Aruka House -- as the direct descendants of the Maidens of Aruka, of course -- as the First House, the ones to hold the throne. She herself's never been accused of anything illegal; she didn't really come into public prominence until after the battle between the Gatherer and the Eliminator." The captain breathed out, "But there is one other thing we have to keep in mind."

"That being, ma'am?"

"She was Aruka Popok's mother."

"He was Skelad Lara's number two man, Shuutarou," Yut'uch added. "He died the day before she did, cause unknown; according to the reports, the coroner didn't find a mark on him."

Mendou stared at him. "Really?"

* * *

"The ship belonging to Aruka Popok's mother was just attacked?"

"That's right, Sister," Sunda said before she took a sip of her spice tea. The _Koishii Moroboshi_ was soaring at maximum warp for Machibusu. The battlewagon was based at Eiranha, the colony located between Machibusu and Uru. Like Toshitto, Eiranha was a space-borne Gibraltar for Uru's coreward colony planets: a nearly-impregnable series of ground fortresses backed by squadrons of spaceships which could make any attack from the direction of Noukiios a risky thing. "You must know who Miss Insa is. She complains about your people's settlements on Okusei, Tunchusei and Kurrusei, how your government won't bend an iota towards giving us 'our' colonies back. I even heard one particular Ip'ihu group has placed a bounty on her head."

Niap'yeng blinked as she took that in, and then she sat back to gaze intently at Sunda. The two were seated in one of the domed observation halls on the battlewagon's spine. Also present was Hanak'at', she serving as waitress. "Do you believe it is the Outcastes who attacked her ship?" she asked.

"I don't know what to think, to be frank with you," Sunda replied. "Unlike other Urusian leaders you might have met over the years, Sister, I don't have any sort of Imperialist leanings. You won't find any mention of the House of Hoth anywhere in my people's history; my family didn't even acquire a house name until after the Revolution. And personally, I don't understand this constant bickering over those planets my government seems to love to engage in with yours. Any fool with a proper history book could see the Ip'ihu and other Noukiite refugees were there first. And save for the fringe radicals in your society, there's never been a like call from Noukiyek City for us to surrender Machibusu, Baiseki or Tamamono to Noukiite control." Her eyes turned hard. "But what DOES offend me, Sister, is when people on nominally unarmed ships are hurt and killed by pirates. Which, if you strongly think about it, the Ip'ihu actually are."

"In that, Captain, I fully agree with you," Niap'yeng stated. "Except whenever the Outcastes move to defend those colonists on our worlds from attacks from the colonial militias from your planets." Seeing that Sunda didn't react to that counter-charge, the priestess smirked. "That's a good sign."

An eyebrow arched. "Excuse me?"

"If I said that to most of your peers, the first thing they would say in return is that there are NO colonial militias currently active on Machibusu or her sister planets."

Sunda smirked. "I don't particularly care for them, either."

"Are you willing to hear a secret, Captain?"

"That being?"

"For the last two years, the Ip'ihu have received help when it comes to dealing with the colonial militias," the priestess reported. "Do you wish to know where that help came from?"

"Where?"

"Sagussa."

Sunda's jaw dropped. "EXCUSE ME?!"

"It's true," Niap'yeng confirmed with a nod. "Ever since they were so kind enough to terraform six new colony planets for us four years ago -- adding to them four more planets last year -- the Sagussans have secretly deployed elements of their Rover intelligence force to our frontier with your people. The instant they spot any force leaving your planets and heading towards ours, an Ip'ihu group is scrambled to intercept and destroy them. As a matter of fact, last year was the first year in that long battle where NO colonial militia ship penetrated our frontier to attack settlements on our worlds, much less any ship moving people to our new colonies." A shrug. "It surprises me your people never realised that was happening."

The captain took a moment to digest that. "If news of that got back to Onishuto . . . "

"You will then have to ensure you tell them the **whole** story," the priestess advised her. "When Ambassador Hinoto came to us with the offer concerning the Rovers, they attached a very strong stipulation to whatever intelligence was shared with the Ip'ihu: Under NO circumstances were attacks against non-militia targets allowed. The threat of collateral damage in such raids was something the Sagussans found quite repugnant. In effect, **any** raids directed against your planets was to stop then and there."

Sunda blinked as she absorbed that news. Thinking about it -- as a captain in the Defence Force, she had access to top secret intelligence that the normal Urusian civilian never saw outside wild stories in the trash infonets -- she did realise that in the last couple of years, attacks by the Ip'ihu seemed to have been limited to the space around the disputed border between the Union and the Dominion. Not a single death on Machibusu or elsewhere as a result from a ground assault by alien starships had been noted for some time.

"So if the attack against Miss Insa's ship was organized by the Ip'ihu . . .?"

"It would be a fringe group who might have taken offence from her many broadcasts against our position concerning our older colonies," Niap'yeng finished. "They do exist, much that it shames me to admit it. Few in numbers, but they are there. I don't like the idea of this undeclared war between our peoples carrying on to the next generation; it doesn't serve Noukiios or Uru any good. It's time for peace to occur once and for all, with strength and respect for both sides. But that can't happen while your government keeps information concerning what's been going on these last two centuries secret from the general public." She took a breath. "Captain, you yourself were witness to the great leap forward your people took twelve years ago when they cast away Seq Yethis and his ilk. Do you want to look back at this time in your people's history and realise that the sacrifices made by Seq Yedris and her daughter, Dedron Sil and so many others were made in vain?"

Sunda shook her head. "No."

"I didn't believe so." A deep breath. "Your people suffered far too much centuries ago at the hands of the Seifukusu Dominion. Only Neptune suffered worse than Uru. We gladly acknowledge that; we always have. Your people have every right to be angry at what happened to your ancestors. But we've always felt that you took that anger and projected it over my people, most likely because you were jealous of the fact that we never had to submit to the Seifukusu when they rampaged across the cluster. Put frankly, Captain, my people have long grown tired of that. It's time for your people to grow up finally and accept the fact that the Universe can be a very cruel, harsh place. Look at this ship's namesake to see what I mean."

With that, she rose and walked out of the lounge. Sunda remained silent as the priestess departed. Hanak'at' remained in place, and then she smirked. "I should apologise for my friend, Captain. When she goes into 'sermon' mode, there's simply no stopping her. Anyhow, you have a good evening."

She rose and walked out. Sunda remained in place.

* * *

"The mother of the one we killed?"

"The very same person," Niap'yeng noted before she sat on her bed. Guest quarters on an Urusian battlewagon weren't very bad, though it wasn't as comfortable as like quarters on a Noukiite ship-of-the-line were. K'yechsungi was standing at the window staring at the passing star field. "Curious that her ship was attacked so close to Machibusu. What was she doing there, anyway? She normally doesn't leave Uru itself."

"There is more to this than we may first suspect, Niap'yeng."

The priestess took that in, and then she nodded. K'yechsungi had some precognitive abilities, though they paled in comparison to Niap'yeng's or any of the other Lost Stars whose gifts concentrated solely in the psionic realms. Despite that, there were things the sin-eater could sense the priestess simply could not; those senses had come to help K'yechsungi in her many battles with the bandits in her home province of Taktek over the last half-decade. To ignore her advice was foolish. "What might we be missing, then?"

"Yut'uch spoke of the Eo rising again."

THAT comment sent Niap'yeng's eyebrows right into her ridges. "Is he sure of it?"

"He implied it when he spoke of breaching the Yekk'ap' to rescue P'yeknu's blood-mother."

A hum escaped the priestess.

* * *

"Miss Reiko?"

Reiko blinked on hearing that voice, and then she turned to gaze on a young Seishin servicewoman standing at the doorway to her bedroom. "What is it?"

"You've been invited to a private dinner in the Number Two dining hall, ma'am."

A blink. "Who invited me?"

"I wasn't told, ma'am. But the message indicated that you definitely would want to go there."

Silence fell as she considered that, and then she sighed. "Alright, I'm coming."

Slipping on her overcoat, she followed her guide out of her room. They boarded an elevator, and then they headed forward to a place several levels above the main bridge. Arriving there, the servicewoman waved her into the mess hall, which normally served as the primary eating facility for officers of the _Koishii Moroboshi_'s air wing. Seated with her back to the doorway was a single woman with neck-length brown hair, she dressed in a kimono. Reiko stared at her for a moment, and then she looked back to where her guide should have been. The woman was gone. "Alright," Reiko whispered to herself before she walked over.

"It's been a very long time. Hasn't it, Rei-chan?"

Reiko stopped on hearing that voice, and then her jaw dropped as the other woman's head slowly turned to allow her to gaze her way. Seeing those features for the first time in over six years sent a lump as big as Noukiios itself into her throat as the other woman stood up, she reaching up to gently adjust her glasses.

Only ONE person in her life had ever called her "Rei-chan."

"Minako . . .?!"

A laugh. "Well, it's just 'Mina' now, Rei-chan." And with that, Fujisawa Mina blinked as her eyes suddenly teared up before she moved towards her. "Oh, Rei-chan! I missed you so much!"

Reiko remained rooted in place as Mina flew into her arms, the latter's lips colliding roughly with the former's as her attempt at embracing her nearly sent the poor Noukiite collapsing to the deck.

* * *

"Did it work, Megane-san?"

Megane jolted on hearing that softly-spoken question, and then he turned to see Yuri standing nearby, a light smile on the Tritonian's face. Turning back to see Reiko and Mina squealing at each other as a reunion six years in the making got underway in earnest, the monk nodded. "Hai, it did."

She reached over to slip her arm around his as she moved to guide them away so they could give Reiko and Mina privacy. "That's good," she noted as she gazed fondly at him.

He didn't notice her look as they headed off.

* * *

A couple hours later, the doors to Reiko's guest cabin opened. Before Reiko and Mina could walk inside, noisemakers sounded off as congratulations balloons burst over their heads, showering the two in confetti as streamers marked with **WELCOME BACK, MINA!** flopped down in front of them.

"HEY!" both girls shrieked before they heard delighted laughter echo from inside.

"We're sorry, Mina-san!" Yuri apologized as she walked over to gently grasp Mina's hands. "We didn't mean to shock you, but we wanted you to feel right back at home!"

Hearing that, Mina blinked, and then she laughed before she allowed the Tritonian to embrace her. Willow and Hiromi, the only other two in the room, came up to embrace their friend and schoolmate. "It's good you're back together with Mina, Reiko-chan!" the Oni said before she kissed the Noukiite's cheek.

Reiko yelped. "Easy, Willow!" she moaned as she pushed her friend away. "My cheeks are still stinging from when Nia lasered off my old tattoos and gave me my new ones!"

"I'll just have to kiss them and make them better."

Before Reiko could react, Mina had slipped over to place a tender kiss on her cheek. "Hey . . .!" the former gasped in shock before the sensual softness of her friend's lips on her skin took her breath away. Blinking for a moment as her mind tried to process what she had just felt, Reiko remained still as Mina slipped over to kiss her other cheek over the new tattoo imprinted there.

Mina backed off to gaze deeply into Reiko's deep turquoise eyes. The latter quickly brought her mind back to the here-and-now, and then she stared unflinchingly into the former's brown eyes. Silence fell over the scene as they gazed on each other, and then Reiko reached down to grasp Mina's hands, allowing her psi-guards to drop ever so slightly so she could obtain a clear empathic "feel" of her long-missing friend.

Mina's heard was a storm of emotions, including a scar of pain and an equally deep fear. Concerning her parents, no doubt, Reiko quickly concluded, remembering what Mina had told her in the dining hall about the sixteen custody battles fought between Fujisawa Tatsuo and Teizou Hiroko over her after their marriage fell apart when Reiko and Mina were in their final year at the Ishinomaki Girls Primary Academy. But beyond that, there was one undeniable feeling currently exploding from Fujisawa Mina's heart: pure love.

And it was focused on one Moroboshi Reiko.

Reiko felt her eyes tear. "Mina . . . "

_I want you, Rei-chan._

The Noukiite nearly leapt out of her clothes on hearing Mina's voice whisper in her mind, and then she caught herself on realising how much her psi-guards had dropped, almost all the way to the point where, if Mina herself was a Sagussan, a marei'cha bond could form. Relaxing herself as she firmed up her shields -- while knowing Mina's feelings was a clear bonus, she didn't want to be seen as invading the other woman's mental privacy -- Reiko gently tugged Mina's hands towards her, allowing the latter to approach.

Seeing their lips caress, Willow and Hiromi could only exchange a knowing look before they then sent a warning gaze towards Yuri. Quickly taking the hint, the Tritonian nodded as the three women quietly slipped out of the room, Willow closing the door behind them. Reiko and Mina did not seem to notice.

* * *

"Are P'yeknu and T'ichu well?"

Willow, Hiromi and Yuri cried out in shock on hearing that question, and then they spun around to see K'yechsungi standing there, her arms crossed and a neutral look on her face. "K'yechsungi-san! Don't DO that to us!" Yuri scolded the elfin-eared sin-eater as the air around her seemed to chill.

K'yechsungi appeared not to mind it. "We were tasked by Niap'yeng to serve as hich'ek to P'yeknu when she came aboard this ship. If P'yeknu now sees T'ichu as her heart-mate, that also concerns us." Her strange melodic voice then hardened into cold steel. "We ask again, Yuri: Are they well?"

Yuri felt an icy cold -- and for a Tritonian, this was truly a BAD thing! -- race up her spine as the sin-eater's dark eyes seemed to bore right into her soul. Before she could decide what to do, Hiromi sighed as she walked over to squeeze K'yechsungi's shoulder in reassurance. "They're fine," the girl from Ise said. "They just need a little private time to themselves now, so don't bother them. Okay?"

K'yechsungi blinked, and then she gazed into Hiromi's eyes for a moment before she smiled. This time, it wasn't the icy grins she normally projected. "You are touching us, Hiromi."

Hearing that, the Terran yelped as she yanked her hand away from the Noukiite's shoulder. "Sorry!"

The sin-eater laughed as she turned to walk away. "You need not fear us, Hiromi. It is a rare thing for anyone to desire contact with us, given the way we are." A wistful smile crossed her face as she gazed over her shoulder at Willow's fiancée. "It is a pity. Had not Aya made the nep'ch'uop'e-o k'ahenich-kach kyungheng to you, we might have actually come to think of you as our potential heart-mate."

She walked off. Hiromi blinked several times as she took that in, and then she turned to stare at her fiancée. "Should I be scared now, Willow?"

"Actually, that was Chai-yu's way of saying she likes you."

All three snapped around to see Hanak'at' standing close by, she relaxing against the bulkhead across from the closed door of Reiko's room, her arms crossed. "She actually can LIKE people?!" Willow demanded.

"She can," Hanak'at' replied as she gave the Oni a stern look. "Granted, before she came to Earth, Chai-yu was often treated by most people as being an Uohu in disguise, especially with the amount of bodies she could pile up whenever her hunger for souls got the better of her during all the fights she had with the bandits in the hill country of Taktek and she lost control of herself." A tired look crossed her face. "But give her the chance and she can be a very friendly person. All she really needs is someone who can try to understand her and help her deal with her hunger and her multiple personalities and she'd be set for life."

"I guess we shouldn't be so quick to judge," Hiromi noted.

* * *

Unseen by them, though certainly still within her sister's sensing range, K'yechsungi was leaning against a bulkhead, her eyes tearing. _We never tell you how much we love you enough, Cha-yu . . ._

* * *

"Ne, Rei-chan . . .?"

"Hmm . . . what is it, Mina?"

"What did K'yechsungi-san mean when she called me 'T'ichu?'"

Reiko paused, and then she smirked as she pulled up from kissing and licking Mina's spine to nibble one of her earlobes. "Well, when you changed your name from 'Minako' to 'Mina,' you changed the kanji from the 'three apples child' ones your parents stuck you with to the normal way that name's written, right?"

"Hai, Rei-chan . . . " Mina breathed out as she felt her lover's hands reach into her opened kimono top to start exploring more interesting points on her body.

"Well, if we went with the old meaning of your name, it would be said in Noukiite as 'Hoch'chuk'nu.'" Reiko pulled away from Mina's ear to direct her tongue's attention to a bared shoulder. "Going by the way you write it now, your name would be said 'T'ichunu' back on Noukiios. Or 'T'ichu' if you want to keep the '-ko' ending off your name. And that sounds a lot better to me, believe it or not."

Mina smiled. "I'm glad."

* * *

"Aya?"

Willow tensed, and then she turned to see Niap'yeng walk up to her, she accompanied by Megane Aisuru. "Yes, Nia . . .? Oh, hello, Megane-san! What're you doing here? Did you come aboard with Mina-san?"

"I did, Willow-san," the monk said as he bowed his head to them. "It's good to see you two again. And if what the honourable sister just told me now, I believe congratulations are in order."

"Eh?!" the Oni said as she gave him a curious look. "What do you . . .?"

"I told him already," Niap'yeng said as she pulled out a small case from inside her jersey.

Megane held out his hand. Placing the case there, Niap'yeng opened it to reveal a curious two-chain necklace, they hooked onto twinned heart-shaped pendants held together by a thin and fragile band of gold, each pendant holding a beautiful ruby. A promise necklace, the visible sign of an engaged couple in Noukiite society. Picking it up, Niap'yeng moved to gently secure it around Willow's neck, the latter bowing her head to allow the priestess to do just that. Once that was in place, Niap'yeng leaned down to tenderly kiss Willow's forehead. "Be whole and happy, Aya." She gazed on Hiromi. "I think she's yours, Hiromi."

"She always has been, Sister," Hiromi noted before she gently grasped her fiancée's hands. "Come along now, Dearest. We need to discuss a couple things in our cabin."

"H-hai," Willow stammered as she allowed herself to be pulled away.

Taking the empty case back from Megane, Niap'yeng slipped it into her top. "Sister?" Yuri asked.

"Yes, Yuri?"

"Would you happen to have another one of those by any chance?"

Niap'yeng stared quizzically at Reiko's friend from Triton, and then she noted that Yuri's eyes seemed fixed on Megane Aisuru, a funny smile crossing her face. Hanak'at' had also noted that. Much to Niap'yeng's surprise, Megane was oblivious about the Tritonian's stare. "I might," the priestess noted. "But if I might offer you a small amount of advice, Yuri, you might consider casting your eyes elsewhere when it comes to seeking out your heart-mate. The one you currently desire might be quite beyond your grasp."

Yuri smirked. "I prefer to think otherwise, Sister."

With that, she headed off, whistling some bars from _Space Is Super-Weird_. Megane watched her go, and then he hummed. "She shouldn't have any problems obtaining the one she desires," he noted.

Niap'yeng and Hanak'at' stared askance at the monk as he turned to head back to his own guest cabin. The Noukiites watched him go, and then they exchanged a look. "Do we tell him?" the latter wondered.

The priestess considered that for a moment, and then she shook her head. "No, not yet."

"Okay."

* * *

Sometime later, the _Koishii Moroboshi_ emerged from warp three light-years from Machibusu, on the closest line of approach between that planet's star system and Tamamono's. The battlewagon's crew were at battle stations, her shields up and weapons primed, all her fighters armed and at the catapults, as she began a detailed sensor sweep of the area. On the bridge, Sunda stood close to the helmsman's station as sensor information flowed into the other bridge stations to give her a full picture of what happened here.

It wasn't that much.

"Are you sure this is the place where the distress call came from, Lookout?"

"Yes, ma'am!" the sensory officer reported after a quick glance at the readouts. "There are traces of many warp signatures in the area, coming it from every direction you could imagine. At least fourteen ships were involved in this mess, not counting Miss Insa's. Yet still . . .!"

"What is it?" Sunda asked.

"None of the ships show any distinct Noukiite energy sources."

Everyone stared at the sensory officer in shocked disbelief. "NONE?!" Yut'uch demanded for them all.

"That's right, sir! None!"

Confused looks were exchanged. Noukiite starships worked on a mixed format of solar sails and matter/anti-matter combustion warp drives; the easiest way to tell that a Noukiite ship was in the area was the distinct lack of ion particles that were sucked up by the sails to be funnelled into the reactors to create the warp fields. Only the Seifukusu Dominion used a similar process for their starships' main drive systems. "That's odd," Sunda hissed before she asked, "What do the warp traces indicate, Lookout?"

"A whole mixed bag of drive systems, ma'am. Mostly Urusian with some Fukunokami, even Ipraedies and Ellsian systems. If this is some sort of Ip'ihu trick, it's the most complex one I've ever seen . . . "

"It's not Ip'ihu."

Eyes locked on the captain. "Ma'am, can you substantiate that?" Mendou asked.

"Quite easy, Shuutarou," Sunda replied. "The Noukiites are many things. One of them that's not so well known is that they're very proud of their shipbuilding tradition. Not even the most devious Ip'ihu war-leader would sail on anything that wasn't built in a Noukiite shipyard, even a privately owned one. This was someone else's raid." She gazed on her bridge crew. "Now it's our responsibility to find out who."

"I think I've got a potential course, ma'am."

"Where, Lookout?"

"Course 088 mark 344. That would take us in the general direction of the Konton system."

People blinked confusedly. "Konton?!" Yut'uch demanded. "Konton itself is a Class H desert planet that's not claimed by anyone. There are only four other planets in the system and none of them would come close to being usable: it's got two Class Bs, a Class A and a Class E. It's a useless system."

Sunda's eyes narrowed. "That would make it perfect for some new group of pirates to start up," she noted. "Pilot, change course and take us towards Konton."

"Aye, ma'am!"

"Signals, a message to Squadron headquarters on Eiranha. Inform them of what we're doing."

"Aye, ma'am!"

With that, the _Koishii Moroboshi_ leapt off into warp.

* * *

_He had no idea how long he had been in this place._

_Reflecting on it as he tenderly moved to adjust himself on the bed, it had seemed a drunken blur. The assembled fleet of the Nehech Navy, fifty ships strong, in orbit over Seueukhek, then in the part of its vast orbit where it would form a direct line between Noukiios itself and Machibusu. Approaching from outside the system was what was left of the Eo Pirate Kingdom, a fleet nearly twice as big as his, yet each ship in the enemy armada nowhere as close to what had been constructed in the yards in Nichsuo over the last ten years, ever since His Majesty's command to permanently deal with these creatures had come._

_Standing on the bridge of his flagship, he had grinned when the challenge signal had come from the Eo flagship. The usual demand of monetary tribute to the horn-head outcastes' sham of a kingdom on that gaudy pink world of theirs, an amount that could have, over time, emptied the Royal Treasury. Too bad for the Eo that the Noukiites, during the infighting of the period between the fall of Ait'uch Nehech and the rise of Ep'ye, had learned the bitter lesson that when one was made to pay Danegeld, one never got rid of the Dane._

_The order to attack was given. The black flag signal was sent with it, guaranteeing that on this day, no quarter would be given or taken by the righteous warriors of Noukiios. The dragon ships rammed into the attacking fleet bows first, allowing the boarding crews to surge in and overwhelm the Urusians without needing to learn how to breathe vacuum along the way. As soon as the flagship had rammed into the enemy command ship, the boarding teams went over, he following in the second wave. Even if he was the Lord Admiral of the Stars, the Emperor's chosen war-leader in this conflict, he never liked leading from behind._

_That decision had, according to the history books, cost him his life that day in 4606._

_He knew otherwise._

_"Don't tell them . . . I'm hurt . . . " he had told one of his battle adjutants when the stray energy bolt caught him in the side, penetrating his armour at its weakest point to flood his lungs with blood._

_Then . . ._

_He didn't know what happened next . . ._

_The reddish fire._

_The curious smoke that filled the hall._

_The hoarse gasp from fiery Sen: "Yekk'ap' . . . "_

_And then . . .?_

_What had wise Pen said . . .?_

_"You will live, My Lord Admiral."_

_And then . . .?_

_"And we will be with you," brave Uin vowed._

_Then . . .?_

_"Always," all three of them -- his concubines as well as his closest aides -- said together._

_What . . .?_

_What had happened to them?_

_What had happened to HIM?_

_Where was he . . .?_

* * *

"Papa . . . "

Mina blinked as she heard that whispered word escape her lover's lips. Turning around in the bed, she found herself gazing at a tortured face clearly showing that Reiko was caught in a dream. It wasn't a nightmare; from what she remembered Lum once telling her about the Noukiite, whenever Reiko was struck by THAT, things tended to start flying around her bedroom. Yet she still seemed in pain . . .!

Gasping, Reiko bolted up, the covers tumbling away from her. Blinking as her mind fully returned to wakefulness, the Noukiite shook her head before she stifled a yawn. "Damn . . . "

"Rei-chan, are you okay?"

Reiko blinked as her mind interpreted that question, and then she turned to stare at Mina's face, it creased with concern. "Mina . . .?" she whispered, and then she leaned over to kiss her. "Sorry."

Mina reached up to cup her lover's cheek. "What is it, Reiko? What's wrong?"

Silence fell as the Noukiite considered what to say. In the time between the moment she had met Mina in the dining hall and the moment when their feelings for each other began to demand a more physical form of expression, she had yet to take a chance to explain the uniqueness of her origins. As far as Fujisawa Mina knew, Moroboshi Reiko was an orphan girl from Noukiios who had been seized by a brutal gang of child-slavers after her birth, subjected to DNA-altering experiments that gave her a vast array of psionic powers, and then she was brought to Earth from her home world by a kind Ipraedies when she was seven, to encounter Moroboshi Ataru in Tomobiki. Never once had Reiko told Mina she was in the very unique position to claim TWO genetic mothers and TEN genetic fathers, all having lived in different periods of Noukiite history over a span of four thousand years. Never had she told Mina that she was technically a bioroid, in essence no different than an Avalonian, grown for reasons she couldn't, even to this day, begin to guess.

Sighing, she leaned over to tenderly kiss her lover's lips before she moved to get dressed. "It's a really long story, Mina," Reiko explained as she slipped on her panties. Before she could reach for her trousers, the Noukiite tensed on sensing the battlewagon was slipping out of warp into normal space. "What the . . .?" she began before she looked out the window, and then her jaw dropped as the star field turned back to normal, it soon being masked by plumes of burning red energy.

"What is THAT?!" Mina called out as she stumbled out of bed, moving to stand beside Reiko.

Reiko was speechless for a moment before she muttered out, "Yekk'ap' . . . "

* * *

"The Dragon's Breath, Yut'uch?"

"Yes, Captain," the combat information officer replied as the bridge crew stared in awe at the sea of burning plasma before them. The _Koishii Moroboshi_ had de-warped on the outskirts of the Konton system, she moving to launch her patrol fighters to sweep the area for Aruka Insa's ship and/or her attackers before she would probe all the way to the only possibly habitable planet in the system for a more detailed search. The battlewagon's bow was struck by an errant torrent of energy just as she completed egress from hyperspace, keeping the air wing on the catapults for the time being. "From what previous examinations of this thing have said, it's a space-time nexus gate, like the Outland Nebula near Elle, the gateway to that strange dimension Mrs. Lum's sisters-in-law emerged from thirteen years ago, just after the Tomobiki Spirit-War."

"But where does this thing lead into?" the weapons officer asked.

"That's the mystery of this place," Yut'uch reported. "No deep probes into this phenomena have ever been sent by anyone, at least to our knowledge. Since it doesn't seem to run on any sort of set timetable between appearances, no one's ever really desired to try to find out more about it."

"That's not surprising," the sensor officer warned.

"Why do you say that?" Mendou asked.

"The area around this place is very heavily disturbed, Commander. Scans from any of our systems only seem to be stretching out a total of fifty kilometres from us. We're practically blind here."

"Great!" Sunda hissed. "What was the last recorded time this thing appeared?"

"Three hundred and twenty-six years ago, over Noukiios."

The bridge crew turned aft to see Ik'a standing at the landing to the turbolift. Sunda blinked, and then she sighed. "Sir, we're at battle stations right now. Please, could you . . .?"

The ancient warrior held up a hand, that move silencing the captain just as swiftly as if he had told her to be silent. With that, he walked forward, placing himself in a position beside the helmsman's station as he seemed to "gaze" into the heart of the burning caldron many kilometres off the "Koishii Moroboshi's" bow. Watching him, Yut'uch wondered if Ik'a was using his tracking powers in some attempt to . . .

"She is there."

Everyone blinked. "Who, sir?" Sunda asked.

Ik'a smirked, and then he "looked" at the captain. "Lady War-Leader Sunda, do you consider yourself an honourable person?" he asked, a touch of amusement in his voice.

Surprised by that question -- to say anything of the formal-sounding title the elder Noukiite just addressed her by -- the captain took a moment to answer. "I would like to think I am."

An eyebrow arched. "That is good. Would you like to see the long hostilities haunting relations between our peoples to finally come to an end, once and for all time?"

People on the bridge exchanged confused looks. Watching his shipmates, Mendou Shuutarou was quick to sense looks of agitation from some of the officers present, people he -- having been told this by Yut'uch over the months they had served together -- knew tended to have more negative feelings when it came to the Noukiites. Hoth Sunda, fortunately, was not one of them. "I would gladly welcome such a happenstance, sir."

Ik'a's grin grew wider. "Wonderful! Then how would you like to help me in a rescue mission?"

Sunda gaped. "A rescue mission?! Of who?!"

"My real mother, Captain."

Eyes snapped aft to see Reiko standing there, she dressed in her dress trousers and an undershirt. Fujisawa Mina, hastily dressed in her kimono, stood beside her. "Miss Reiko?!" Sunda gasped on seeing her, and then she blinked as the newcomer's statement repeated itself in her mind. "Your real mother?!"

"Reiko-san, with all due respect, both your mothers have been dead for centuries!" Mendou declared.

Sunda's jaw dropped to the deck. "'BOTH MOTHERS?!' WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!"

Mina grinned as she stared at her lover. "You want to explain this one, Rei-chan?"

"Guess I have to," Reiko muttered under her breath.

The explanation took about ten minutes. As Sunda was told everything, Mendou got the sensor officer to prepare some deep space probes to send into the Yekk'ap' so that an up-to-date scan of the phenomena could be archived for further study. Once that was done, Ik'a made his own confession. Hearing what the aged warrior had done 326 years before, everyone on the bridge crew save Yut'uch were stunned speechless. Mina walked over to gently brush the old warrior's hair away from one of his ears -- tapered, just like a Vosian's -- to make everyone better comprehend what happened and why. Finally, the communications officer moved to recap: "So when you realised there was simply no way to protect Miss Reiko's mother from the assassins the Seqs and the Pochiks sent after her, you found yourself able to actually open a portal into that thing . . . " -- he pointed to the Yekk'ap' -- "To allow Miss Reiko's mother to escape to safety."

"That I did, young man," Ik'a replied, nodding.

Mendou stared at his friend. "Yut'uch, you once told me your ancestors served as footmen to the Governors-General of Noukiios during the Occupation. Did they know about the Empress' disappearance?"

"They did," Yut'uch admitted, he scratching the back of his head as an embarrassed chuckle escaped him. "When there was no trace of Her Majesty's body found ANYWHERE on Noukiios -- and once you took in the fact that the Venerable Neuch'ahi was involved in dealing with the Empress' would-be killers -- it was easy to put the rest of the story together. Of course, as to how he did it . . .?"

Before anyone could say anything, the ship shuddered violently as something hard slammed into her shields. The klaxons blared as the sensor officer spun around to gaze into his screen. "Incoming fire from multiple targets, Captain! Five -- no, SIX! -- corvette-class ships, coming at us from starboard, bearing 197 mark 28!" He then gaped before staring at Sunda. "Captain! They're U.D.F. surplus ships!"

"WHAT?!" Sunda demanded.

The _Koishii Moroboshi_ shuddered again as more plasma fire and missiles came streaking at her. As Sunda ordered the flight deck to prepare to launch fighters, Mendou barked for weapons to be aimed at the incoming targets. Ik'a moved back to join Reiko and Mina by the elevator just as the first pair soared over the battlewagon's spine, their weapons firing down to punch into the main hull, they stopped short of their targets by the larger ship's shields. The impact shock was still considerable, the kinetic force driving the battlewagon down towards a particularly large tendril of the Yekk'ap'. As the helmsman tried to get the ship back on course, the long guns on the _Koishii Moroboshi_ opened up on her attackers, sending them scattering in all directions just as the sensor officer announced more ships were coming in. Their origins were also quickly concluded. "More surplus ships?!" Sunda demanded. "Who ARE these people?!"

"Most likely, they're the Eo!" Ik'a advised.

Sunda's head snapped back to allow her to stare wide-eyed at the aged Noukiite. "**_THE EO?!_**" she screamed out. "But they were wiped out by your Admiral Yi years ago . . .!"

The battlewagon shuddered again as another weapons volley slammed into the shields. "Looks like someone decided to pick up the banner again, Captain!" Reiko grunted.

"Reiko-san, get Mina-san back into the main hull!" Mendou called out. "This is no place for you!"

"I'll take them!" Ik'a promised.

With that, he guided Reiko and Mina onto the elevator pad to take them updeck.

* * *

As the three passengers left the battlewagon's combat control centre, one of the attacking fighters approaching the _Koishii Moroboshi_ from aft starboard seemed to dip for a moment, her plasma weapons lashing into the burning sea of the Dragon's Breath. In seconds, the area hit by those weapons exploded in a violent geyser of energy a hundred kilometres long, that catching the battlewagon right at the stern. The shields protecting the vital engine spaces were overwhelmed by the impact, they collapsing enough to allow the energy to rip open the _Koishii Moroboshi_'s main hull from amidships starboard right to the fantail. The main drive core of the battlewagon was torn free from its housing to spiral away from the Yekk'ap', the loss of all atmospheric pressure killing most of the engineering crew as they were flung into the unforgiving vacuum. Thus, deprived of her main power source, the _Koishii Moroboshi_ began to drift ominously downwards and to her port -- right towards an oncoming wall of energy that seemed to be blooming from the Yekk'ap'.

* * *

As power failed throughout the ship, Reiko and Mina cried out as the elevator stopped, it caught between decks. Ik'a, who was physically blind and thus not frightened by the sudden absence of visual light, tensed as he felt the motion stop, and then he asked, "What happened?!"

"The turbolift's stopped!" Mina screamed. "What's going on?!"

The battlewagon around them shuddered again as more missiles struck home, they no longer stopped by deflector shields. As the sounds of the explosions began to fade, an ominous creaking nose began, that causing all three of them to tense further. "Wh-what's h-happening?" Mina stammered.

"Explosive decompression," Reiko warned, a strange sense of calm coming down on her as she moved to hold her lover close to her. "Without shields, any hits would rip the hull right open."

Mina heard that, and then she blanched. "We're gonna die . . .!"

"Not necessarily."

Both gazed in the general direction of Ik'a. "What do you mean?!" Reiko demanded.

"There's one possible escape route," the aged warrior noted. "I never got the chance to answer young Yut'uch's question as to how I managed to see your mother safely into the Yekk'ap', child." A deep breath. "There's no 'set' way to open the gateway into the Yekk'ap', P'yeknu! As far as I could figure out in the years after I helped your mother get to safety, you need a very strong emotion to key into it. Is it a gift from the Lord of Heaven? I can't say." A shake of the head. "Still, as far as I could . . .!"

"Reik- . . . MMMFPTH!"

Ik'a paused as he heard Mina's voice get cut off, most likely by Reiko passionately kissing her. He jolted as he felt a _second_ set of brainwaves suddenly appear from behind a curious veil in the blackness of his inner eye vision. A set of brainwaves that was so intense, it reminded him of that day so long ago, when his determination to see an innocent women safe from the howling assassins sent after her seemed to open a rip in the very fabric of Reality Itself into the beautiful Place Beyond . . .!

As pain started to thunder in his mind, he sensed something else coming.

* * *

At that second, a storm of energy burst from the heart of the Yekk'ap' to slam into the _Koishii Moroboshi_ on the port side, right above the bridge. The blow was enough to rip the ship in half.

* * *

"**_REIKO!_**"

Moroboshi Ataru surged up, his left eye glowing star-bright as something seemed to catapult him from Lum's arms and out of their bedroom. Lum herself was nearly flipped out of bed by her husband's movements, but she quickly recovered as she used her flight powers to save her head from a nasty blow on the floor or the dresser. "Darling!" she called out after him. "What is it?! What's wrong?!"

No answer; Ataru was already running downstairs three steps at a time. As Lum flew out to pursue, the door to Amora's room opened, a teary-eyed girl staring fearfully at her mother as her eyes began to glow a very pretty pink. "Mom! What's wrong with Dad?! He's hurting bad!" she sobbed.

Lum stopped, she moving to embrace her, her own mind reaching out to shield Amora's from whatever it was that had just possessed Ataru, sending him down into his private study in the basement. "It's alright, Amora," she promised as she flew down the stairwell to the main floor. "It's going to be . . .!"

The back door flew open. "**_ATARU!_**" Miyake Shinobu called out as she surged inside, her eyes wide in blind panic after feeling the psychic backlash nearly overwhelm her through the bond she shared with her former boyfriend. Without hesitation, the nurse/crown princess moved towards the basement to see what was happening, she followed by Lum, who was still cradling a now-sobbing Amora in her arms.

In the study, which had been installed in the house after Moroboshi Muchi and his wife had moved out to take up retirement in an apartment in Hachiouji, Ataru flicked on the small transmitter unit that served as his direct link with the Galactic Situation Room, still located deep within the Chamber of Eternity in the hills east of Sagussa's capital city. He remained in place as he waited for the signal to go through, the glow in his left eye fading as he began to mutter something incomprehensible. By the time Shinobu had run in to join him, the screen before him flicked on, revealing a very welcome face. "Galactic Situation Room Duty . . .! OH!" Seikou Mie gasped on recognising who was calling in. "Ataru! What in . . .?!"

"Mie, where's the _Hasei'cha_ right now?!" he cut her off.

The flightmistress jolted, she tensing on hearing the panic in his voice, and then she calmly answered, "She's on a trial deployment under Eluza's command near Crossroads. Why . . .?!"

"Send a signal to them right away!" Ataru ordered. "They're to go to the Konton system! Something just happened to the _Koishii Moroboshi_ and Reiko-chan! Get the order out NOW, Mie!"

Mie took a second to absorb that, and then she nodded. "Right away!"

She turned to bark orders to her co-workers. Ataru watched her go to work, and then he sagged to his knees, the adrenaline that had started to thunder through his body fading. Shinobu grabbed him before he could pass out on the floor, and then she shifted him to the chair by his work desk. By then, Lum was at the doorway, she still comforting a sobbing Amora. "Darling!" she pleaded. "Is Reiko-chan . . .?!"

Shinobu waved her silent before she leaned down to touch his face and probe his mind. A second later, she suddenly inhaled as the colour drained from her face. "Jesu Cristo . . .!"

"WHAT?!" Lum screamed out.

The nurse staggered back from her bond-mate, and then she dropped to her knees, her eyes tearing before she turned to stare ashen-faced at Lum. "He sensed Reiko and Mina . . . "

Her voice trailed off before a sob burst free from her lungs, her hands flying up to her face as she curled into herself. The Oni took that in, and then her eyes rolled into her head as she passed out. Hearing that, Amora shuddered as she mumbled "Onee-chan . . .!" before she wailed.

* * *

_There was the smell of sweet peppers in the air._

_It was late spring, she knew._

_Sweet pepper flowers were in bloom . . ._

_Wait!_

_Sweet peppers?!_

_She hadn't smelled anything like that in years._

_Where . . .?_

_"Reiko!"_

_Reiko's eyes flew open as she found herself staring into a bright blue sky, the orange-gold tinge of a familiar home star reflecting in her eyes to her left and up. A groan escaped her as a hand came up to shield her eyes from the light, and then she blinked as Fujisawa Mina's head appeared in her vision, concern etched in the Terran's features. "Mina . . .?" she rasped before a sharp jolt of pain lanced through her head. "Oh, DAMN!" she croaked as she turned onto her side, her hand reaching for her temple. "What . . .?"_

_"Don't move!" Mina told her as she took her torn kimono sleeve and placed it on the right side of her lover's skull above her ear. "You hit your head on something when we came to this place! Stay still!"_

_Reiko whimpered as she felt the fabric press against her hair, that turning into a content sigh as Mina rolled her onto her back, she keeping the improvised bandage in place. Her head still ached as she started to pick up a ringing noise in her ears. "Oh, damn . . . " she hissed. "My head feels like it was thrust inside the Great Bell of King Hekch'eng in Yekna in the middle of New Year's celebrations!"_

_"Don't talk, Rei-chan," Mina urged. "Just relax!"_

_"Hai . . .!" Reiko groaned, and then she blinked. "Mina?"_

_"Yeah?"_

_"How long were we out?"_

_Mina shook her head. "Can't tell. I just woke up a few minutes ago -- I think it's a few minutes ago! -- and saw what happened to you!" She looked around. "We're in some sort of high plateau somewhere. Mountains ranges all around us, but there's a valley to the east and north. Haven't had much of a chance to look around. It's not on Earth; the sun's more orange and it doesn't hurt my eyes as much to look at it."_

_Reiko took a moment to consider that. "We're on Noukiios."_

_Silence._

_"NOUKIIOS?!" Mina gaped at her lover. "How in the name of the Kami did we get HERE?!"_

_"Don't know . . . " Reiko breathed out before a fresh flash of pain surged through her mind. "Damn!"_

_"P'yeknu! T'ichu!"_

_Mina looked over, and then she yelped in delight on seeing K'yechsungi run up to her. "Hey!" she cried out as she waved her hand to get the sin-eater's attention. "Over here! Reiko's hurt!"_

_Slowing down as she reached out mentally to probe Reiko's mind and body, K'yechsungi smirked as she looked back. "Cha-yu!" she yelled. "P'yeknu is hurt! We need you!"_

_Mina watched, her eyes tearing in relief, as Hanak'at', she followed by Niap'yeng and the others who had come aboard the_ Koishii Moroboshi _from Earth, ran up. Arriving at her sister's side, Hanak'at' stared intently at Reiko for a moment, and then she moved to kneel above her sister Lost Star's head. "Move your bandage away, Mina!" she ordered as the air around her right hand began to crackle with energy._

_Megane was quick to notice. "A healer's touch?!"_

_"Not really, but it'll do for now!" Niap'yeng confirmed. "Quickly, Han!"_

_"On it!" Hanak'at' promised._

_As soon as the torn sleeve was cleared from the gash in the side of Reiko's head, Hanak'at' brought her hand down to hover over it. Reiko cried out in more pain as energy emitting from the older Noukiite's hand surged into the wound, that cauterizing it instantly. As soon as the blood was prevented from flowing out again, Hanak'at' relaxed, she taking Mina's improvised bandage to place it once more over the wound. "Hold it there, Mina," she ordered Reiko's lover. "We don't have a healer with us right now and P'yeknu's healing abilities still need a chance to kick in and start working."_

_"Hai!"_

_"Is this everyone who got clear of the ship?" Willow asked. "What happened, anyway?!"_

_"Were we attacked?!" Hiromi demanded._

_"We were."_

_Eyes locked in K'yechsungi. "Who?" Megane demanded._

_"Yut'uch warned us about this possibility before we boarded the ship," the sin-eater answered as she gazed intently on the monk. "The Eo have risen again."_

_Seeing Megane's confused look, Niap'yeng launched into a quick explanation as to whom the Eo were. At the end of that, he took a deep breath before covering his face with his hand. "It never rains but it pours," he muttered under his breath, and then he looked around. "Where are we, anyway?"_

_"Let me go up and look around," Willow volunteered, and then she flew off into the sky._

_"Don't fly too far, Willow!" Hiromi yelled after her._

_The Oni complied, she coming to a stop about twenty metres above the ground. Taking a moment to look around the countryside, she stopped as she looked somewhere to the north, a cry of shock escaping her as she pointed somewhere in that direction. With that, she flew down to land beside her fiancée. "We're on Noukiios! This must be Mount Chuch' we're on; I could see Yekna off to the north of us!"_

_Niap'yeng took that in, and then she turned towards the east. "If we're close to Yekna, that means it's not so far from here to K'ap'ang-hu." She pointed in the general direction of one of Noukiios' most famous halls of worship. "I know one of the clerics assigned there!" She turned to K'yechsungi. "K'yech, fly over there and find Brother Syoek. Mention my name to him. He'll be able to get aide!"_

_A nod. "We will go!"_

_With that, the sin-destroyer morphed into her winged form, and she flew off. Watching her go, the others breathed out in relief. "So how did we get to Noukiios in the first place?" Yuri asked. "The last thing I remembered was when those missiles struck the ship when we were close to that nebula."_

_"We may not be where we think we are," Megane warned._

_"Hey! I DID see Yekna!" Willow reminded him._

_"He's right, guys . . . "_

_Eyes locked on Reiko. "Keep quiet, Reiko," Mina urged._

_A shake of the head. "No, I can't, Mina!" she spat. "You don't understand! This isn't Noukiios . . .!" She winced as another stab of pain flashed through her head. "We're inside the Yekk'ap' . . .!"_

_Silence fell as everyone stared at her. _

* * *

_As an avian would fly, it was about fifty kilometres between the peak of the South Mountain of Yekna to the main gate of the K'ap'ang Temple. While she was a long-time resident of Taktek and Yekna was located close to the border between the northern and southern parts of the province of Yekhek, K'yechsungi knew the way there like the back of her hand. Part of the Lost Stars' programming was a complete download of all geographical, historical and cultural knowledge concerning their home world, that copied from the memories of hundreds of people so the girls could be as rounded out educationally as possible. It was surprising given that the Masters had intended for their slaves to be sold off throughout the local cluster. But after they were freed by Moroboshi Ataru, it became of great benefit, especially as the 499 girls who were sent to the Abbey of Lyna on Magairu returned to their home world and strove to get their lives put back together._

_Landing at the bottom of one of the stairways leading into the main temple itself, K'yechsungi paused as she took a look around. The place was utterly pristine, yet there seemed to be something missing from it. Taking a moment to consider that, the sin-destroyer's eyes widened as it hit her: people. There were no people anywhere on the grounds. Given that K'ap'ang Temple was BOTH one of Noukiios' most well-preserved historical sites AND a functioning temple for the faith of her people, there should at least be several of the large company of clerics assigned here, not to mention the regiment of groundskeepers and guides who helped keep the place clean. Where were they? Had something happened to . . .?_

_K'yechsungi tensed on feeling a presence within the temple itself. Relaxing, she focused her senses on a person within Ch'uoak Hall, the great meditation room. Morphing herself to her "normal" form, the sin-destroyer performed the traditional prayer on entering a strange shrine at the foot of the bridge which had been built to bring parishioners from ground level to the level of Ch'uoak Hall. Ascending the stairs, she repeated the prayers midway up, and then again at the apex. Another set of prayers were performed before she passed between a pair of pagoda-like structures guarding the gateway to Ch'uoak Hall, and then she did the same one more time at the very doorway before she slipped off her boots and walked inside to look around._

_"Heaven's blessings on you, stranger."_

_She turned to see a blue-haired, blue-eyed woman with reading glasses standing before the sculpted image of the Ch'uoeuk at the Two Portals, the latter having turned herself around to stare at her. Quickly noting the pre-Occupation style of clothing this woman currently wore, K'yechsungi tensed on seeing the more intricate caste tattoos on her cheeks. The simple designs used these days on Noukiios came into vogue after the Liberation War, when the restrictions concerning facial markings had vanished with the Urusian Imperials. What this woman currently had on her cheeks were something dating from the late middle years of the Nehech Dynasty, which effectively matched her clothes -- to say anything of the old-style particle laser pistol in a holster on the floor beside her feet. Also present was a sheathed eunuch's blade. No doubt, the other woman had been praying before the Two Portals when K'yechsungi had stepped inside._

_The sin-destroyer bowed her head. "We thank you for your greetings, noble warrior, and apologise to you for disturbing your prayers. But we seek aid for a good friend who was wounded on Chuch'-huch when we were brought to this place by means we do not understand. Is there a healer about?"_

_The other woman's head canted slightly as a flash of confusion appeared in her eyes. "Your words are very strange. I know not your accent." Her eyes narrowed slightly as one of her feet slid closer to her sheathed sword. "And I also know that no one born of this world possesses ears quite like yours. So unless you can explain these things to me, I might be forced to take stern action against you."_

_K'yechsungi tensed as automatic reactions within her body began to prime her for the transformation into her winged form, and then she caught herself. Seeing bat-like wings grow out from her back would, no doubt, convince this woman she was possessed by some evil spirit. Clearly, that wouldn't lead anywhere positive for either of them, to say anything of helping P'yeknu. "Before we answer, may we ask you this?" she asked. "Of which year since the time the Ch'uoeuk formed Ait'uch Nehech in Ryekkyuk do you hail?"_

_The other woman blinked. "It has been 4606 years since that great day, stranger."_

_Ah! THAT explained it. "To you," K'yechsungi replied. "To we and our friends, it has been 5121."_

_Silence._

_"What . . .?!"_

_"It's true."_

_K'yechsungi's head snapped around to the main entrance. "Niap'yeng!"_

_The priestess, who had been flown to the temple by Willow so as to not risk use of her teleportation powers within the Yekk'ap', nodded as she moved to stand beside the sin-destroyer. "Heaven's most sincere blessings on you, fair warrior," she bowed her head to the other woman. "I am K'e-Kyekip' Nuk Yehoch' Niap'yeng, humble servant of the Lord of Heaven. This is my honoured friend, the Lady Warrior Eyu-K'ep'yek Teo Yechoch' K'yechsungi." An eyebrow arched. "May we be so honoured with your name, good warrior?"_

_The other woman grinned. "I appear to be kin with your strange friend, Honoured Sister. I am Eyu-K'ep'yek Teo Yeip'e Pen." She gave them a courtly bow. "Heaven's sincere blessings on your both." After reaching down to scoop up her pistol and sword, she asked, "Is this true then, Sister? What my kinswoman just told me? That somehow, I have been moved through time to the Sixth Millennium?"_

_"In a way, yes," Niap'yeng stated. "From whence my friend and I hail, it is the year 5121."_

_"She hails from the year 4606, Niap'yeng," K'yechsungi stated._

_"Ah!" the priestess breathed out with a nod, and then she blinked as the significance of that date came up in her mind. "Were you at Seueukhek? The final battle against the Eo pirates?"_

_Pen's eyes widened on hearing that statement, and then she breathed out, "So we defeated them!"_

_"Not just defeated them, but annihilated them," Niap'yeng affirmed. "Or so we believed until scant minutes before we were brought into the Yekk'ap' after our ship was attacked and destroyed."_

_"The Yekk'ap'?!" Pen gasped, and then she sighed. "So I AM within the Yekk'ap'!" Worry crossed her face as she walked over to grasp Niap'yeng by the shoulders. "Wait! If you found me, have you see my friends?! Have you seen the Lord Admiral?! Our ship was overcome by the Yekk'ap'; it was the last thing I clearly remember before I woke up within the walls of this temple! Have you seen them?!"_

_"No, not . . .!" Niap'yeng moved to answer, and then her eyes went wide in shock. "WHAT?! Are you saying Admiral Ye-Yi was with you, too?! But he was killed when his ship . . .!" Her voice trailed off as it hit her. "Oh, my . . .!" she breathed out as she stared at K'yechsungi._

_The sin-destroyer's eyebrow arched. "It appears to us, Niap'yeng, P'yeknu's father also lives."_

_Silence._

_"_**WHAT?!**_"_

_Both women from the modern day were blasted down by Pen's shriek of outrage as an aura of mad jealousy exploded from every place in her body. "_**WHAT MADNESS IS THIS?!**_" she screamed. "_**ARE YOU SAYING MY SWEET KYESUO ACTUALLY FATHERED A BABY?! AND I WASN'T THE MOTHER?!**_" Her angry look then melted into twin waterfalls of tears as she leapt over to grasp Niap'yeng's hands in her own. "Sister, tell me, please! Was it Sen?! Was it Uin?! Did he manage to have babies with them?! TELL ME! _**TELL ME!**_"_

_Niap'yeng was shocked speechless by Pen's outburst. Staring at her distant relative as she began to wail in what could only be seen as a dead-on imitation of a politician from Taktek named Ae-Techch'e Chusu-Neach -- whose antics in the Dominion Assembly made most Noukiites wonder what sort of hallucinogens his electorate take with breakfast -- K'yechsungi didn't know whether or not she should laugh or walk out of the hall to vomit. "We think P'yeknu might not take well to_ this _revelation," she muttered to herself. _

* * *

_"Yekna was never THIS quiet . . . "_

_Ik'a remained still as he took a moment to sweep around him with his tracking powers. He hadn't frequented the ancient city in years, but it had all come back to him. He was close to the monorail station, a few minutes' walk from K'achseuk Temple. Yet, even in whatever time period this strange replication of Yekna was meant to represent, there should be people around here. Where were they?_

_And where was the Empress now . . .?_

_Wait!_

_Ik'a tensed as his tracking powers suddenly locked in on a person somewhere to his east. Within K'achseuk Temple itself, he immediately realised, no doubt standing close to the great bell that had been forged during Noukiios' Three Kingdoms period. Without hesitation, he turned to head to a nearby pedestrian tunnel that would take him under the monorail line that connected Yekna to Niap'yeng's hometown of Resuk in the north and the great spaceport city of K'ahuch to the south through the industrial centre of Kap'huch. It wouldn't take him too long to get over to K'achseuk Temple so he could find who was there._

_After some minutes of walking, he slowed down on sensing that whomever he was tracking now had stepped out of K'achseuk Temple and was heading his way. Tightening his grip on his cane-sword, he slowed himself down until he felt himself within polite speaking distance of the other. "Hello there!" he called out._

_A woman gasped, that sound followed by the sharp hissing noise of a sword being drawn from its scabbard. Ik'a's hand yanked up his own weapon as his other hand snapped over to draw it, he ready to act. "Wait!" The ancient warrior paused as he heard the other sheathe her weapon. "I will not draw arms against one who cannot see me, even if you seem ready to do battle with me," she noted in a pre-Occupation accent that hinted she was from the northern continent. "Who are you?"_

_"A wanderer," he greeted her with polite but wary neutrality as he relaxed his grip around his weapon. "A prisoner of the Yekk'ap', just as you, fair warrior. Have you seen the T'yekhek Empress, born as Ei-T'ich Yesu-Nukyek, about these parts? She became a prisoner of this place, not long, I suspect, after you did."_

_"I have never heard of such a name," the woman replied, and then she quoted him, "'Ei-T'ich Yesu-Nukyek?!' What type of name is that?! That's no proper name for a Noukiite!"_

_Ik'a tried not to hiss out as he realised his stupid blunder. In the wake of the Urusian Occupation, the naming conventions on Noukiios had been simplified into a two-name format, each name possessing two parts: caste rank-family name, birth order rank-given name. Before the Occupation, it was a five-part/four-name format: caste rank-clan name, family name, birth order rank and given name. And he had been BORN during the time that naming style had been in effect! "Forgive me, good warrior," he apologized to her. "You might probably know her as Ei-Kyesak T'ich Yesu Nukyek. I myself am Ye-Hichaina Etech Chuch'ap' Ik'a."_

_A delighted laugh escaped the woman before him. "You're Hichaina Etech?! We're neighbours! I'm Eyu-Hichaina Aech Yeyeh Uin! Heaven's blessings to you, Venerable!" With that, she walked over to slip her arm around him as she placed a tender kiss on his cheek, her free hand brushing up against his hair to expose his ear. "Ah, any Etech always has_ those_!" she chortled before she tenderly kissed the tip of his tapered earlobe. "So I_ am _in the Yekk'ap', am I?! It feels as if I have been here for only a day! What of our home?! Did we finally win against the Eo?! I was with my friends and Lord Admiral Ye-Echtech Yi when we fought them over Seueukhek, but then the Yekk'ap' took me to this empty version of Yekna! What happened?!"_

_Ik'a turned to "gaze" at her in disbelief, his jaw dropping to the ground in shock. "You fought with Admiral Ye-Echtech Yi at Seueukhek?! That was five hundred years ago!" He paused. "Oh, dear . . .!"_

_A sharp intake of breath from his companion made Ik'a wince. "Five hundred . . .?!"_

_He moved to pat her hand. "It's alright, Lady Uin. This will . . . take time to explain."_

_Silence fell for a moment, and then she breathed out, "You have my attention, Venerable." _

* * *

_"'S funny . . . "_

_"What is it, Marina?"_

_Marina was standing on her usual perch gazing at the empty city in the valley beyond their private hut. Nukyek had come out to stand with her when she saw the hybrid's eyes glow for a second. "I felt as if I could sense some people here. Both in the town and off towards South Mountain." She pointed towards downtown Yekna, and then towards the bulky mountain way off to the southeast of their position. "It was just for a few seconds, and then it faded out on me!" She shook her head. "Or did it . . .?"_

_"Are others here now?!" the Noukiite asked as she gazed on her companion. "Could it be . . .?"_

_Marina shook her head, and then she went still before her eyes started to glow again. Spinning around, she snap-drew Aeyek-hup'uk from her scabbard and took a ready stance before Nukyek. "I can sense you there!" she snarled towards the woods stretching to the west of the hut. "Come out now! Keep your . . .!"_

_"Wait!" a woman with a much older accent than Nukyek's called back. "I mean you no harm!"_

_"Let me see you!"_

_The bushes rustled for a moment before a strawberry-blonde Noukiite woman with golden brown eyes stumbled into the clearing. She was dressed in the old-style battle armour of a shipborne warrior, she packing a eunuch's blade and a pistol belt with weapon. Her caste tattoos, like Nukyek's, were intricate compared to the more simple designs Marina was more aware of. As soon as she was clear of the bushes, she paused to take a look around before her eyes focused on Marina and Nukyek. She jolted as her eyes locked on the hybrid's horn buds before she snap-drew her sword and pistol. "Lady, stand away from that creature!" she snarled as she braced herself, her weapons sweeping around to bear on target._

_Seeing the pistol bear on her, Marina dived away from Nukyek, she hoping that whoever this girl was, she wouldn't think of trying to blast away the empress as she was moving to put her down. The other's battle skills didn't disappoint the hybrid as bolts of energy began to eat up the ground behind her. "Shit . . .!"_

_"_**STOP! LEAVE MY FRIEND ALONE!**_" _

* * *

_"Megane-san, you heard something?!" Yuri asked._

_"Gunshots!" the monk stated before he pointed to the north-northwest. "That way!"_

_"K'yech, go!" Niap'yeng barked._

_K'yechsungi was off. "That sounded like Sen's pistol," Pen stated._

_"Your friend?" Hanak'at' asked._

_"Aye!" _

* * *

_"That was gunfire!" Ik'a stated._

_"That's definitely Sen's pistol!" Uin called out._

_"A friend of yours?!"_

_"My co-lover and one of the Lord Admiral's battle adjutants!"_

_"Oh, dear . . . " _

* * *

_"Someone shooting . . .?"_

_Grunting, he slowly moved to shift himself off the bed. _

* * *

_For Eyu-Hachtech Kaech Yech'uh Sen, time seemed to freeze as her mind interpreted that shouted statement from the noblewoman she had been trying to protect. "What . . .?" she gasped as she turned to stare wide-eyed at Nukyek, her arms nearly letting go of her pistol and sword in shock._

_She jolted on sensing someone running at her. The pistol was neatly sliced in half by Marina's cut as her elbow slammed Sen right in the gut, just below the lower edge of her chest armour. The air flew out of the Noukiite's lungs in a rush, she nearly doubling over as Marina vaulted up, using her shoulder as a battering ram against Sen's chin to send her flying onto her back, the warrior's sword flying out of her hand. As she collapsed to the dirt, the hybrid soared over to plant a foot where she had elbowed Sen, she dramatically twirling around Aeyek-hup'uk to plant the blade's tip right against the carotid artery. Sen's eyes flew open as she felt that sharp tip touch her neck flesh, and then she gulped on feeling empty air in either of her hands. Marina stared down at her with a daring smile. "Don't even think about it, lady!"_

_"Marina, stop!" Nukyek said. "She doesn't understand what you are to me! Let her up!"_

_Sen blinked, and then she turned to gaze on the noblewoman just as Marina slowly pulled her weapon back. Seeing Marina wasn't going to press it, Nukyek walked over, she kneeling down to pick up Sen's own blade as she moved to return it to its owner. "Here you go."_

_Sen jerked as Marina stepped off her, and then she slowly sat herself up, her hand reaching over to take her sword back before she got up. "What is happening here?" she wondered before staring like a lost girl at the noblewoman. "I don't understand! Lady, how could you possibly like . . .?!"_

_"Good warrior, I above all others on Noukiios have no reason to like Urusians in general," Nukyek cut her off, and then she turned to smile at Marina, who seemed to relax on feeling her pe'cha's gaze fall on her. "But there is much more to the Lady Marina of Dysos than you can possibly begin to suspect."_

_Sen's jaw dropped. "Taisos?!" she tried to speak the Yehisrite principality's name in the Noukiite common style, and then she gaped wide-eyed at Marina. "She is part-Yehisrite . . .?"_

_"And part-Vosian and part-Fukunokami, too," Marina confirmed before her eyes glowed. "What the FUCK . . .?!" she snarled out as she moved to get closer to Nukyek._

_"So there you are."_

_Sen and Nukyek cried out on seeing a woman standing at a rock projecting from the cliff overlooking Yekna. A Noukiite woman with ears like a deformed elf's and deeply scalloped bat-like wings. Just as Marina was able to shift herself protectively in front of Nukyek, Sen doing the same, the newcomer looked over her shoulder as the sound of another Oni flying towards them became audible. "Aya, return to Niap'yeng and inform her we found the Empress as well as Muzuka Marina." She turned back to gaze on Sen. "Oh, and tell Pen that we have located one of her companions, but there's no sign of Admiral Ye-Yi . . . "_

_A muffled_ thump! _echoed from the upper floor of the hut just as Willow came up to hover beside K'yechsungi. "Huh?!" Marina blurted out before her eyes started to glow again as she looked towards where she and Nukyek had been staying since they first came into this place. "Who in Purgatory's name is THAT?!"_

_K'yechsungi looked herself with her powers, and then she smirked. "Also tell Niap'yeng and P'yeknu we found the Admiral," she added as she gazed once more on Willow, her grin growing ever so wider._

_"Tcha!" the Oni chirped back before she soared off towards South Mountain._

* * *

"It's been a bit of a while, Shuutarou."

Mendou Shuutarou seemed to stir for a moment before he cried out in shock as his eyes flew open, and then he bolted up from the diagnostic bed he found himself in. "Where . . .?!"

Dark hands fell on his shoulders as he found himself being forced back to lay down. "Relax!" a certain Tookonokooen-born doctor with tapered ears and lavender hair said as she leaned into his field of vision. "You're lucky we were able to warp back into the galaxy to rescue you and your crew!"

Mendou blinked several times, and then he gasped, "Pony-san . . .?"

Another familiar face came into view. "It appears to be a bit of old home week, as they say it on your planet," Eluza declared. "You're aboard the _Hasei'cha_, Shuutarou. Ataru called us when he sensed something happen to Reiko and told us you were in trouble. If we were fifteen minutes late . . . "

"Enough, Dearest!" Pony scolded her bond-mate. "He doesn't need to hear THAT!"

Mendou took a moment to take in what the fleet shipmistress and the civilian doctor -- if what he remembered of Sagussan rank insignia was right -- were talking about, and then he breathed out, "How bad?"

"Your ship's a total write-off," Eluza grimly reported. "Split in half just aft of the bridge; it was a complete burn-through by what Patty reported when she looked at the damage. Engine assembly was blasted off earlier on. We're trying to retrieve the flight recorders now, but I doubt they survived."

Mendou slowly nodded. "Casualties?"

"Two hundred and seventy-nine survivors," Pony answered. "Your captain was one of them."

The Terran commander blanched when he heard that number; the _Koishii Moroboshi_ normally carried a peacetime compliment of 1400 officers and men. "Two hundred and seventy-nine . . .?" he hoarsely exclaimed before closing his eyes. "Gods!" he hissed out as his eyes began to tear. "Who DID this to us . . .?!"

"We're having the Rovers look into it now," Eluza stated. "Get some rest, Shuutarou."

With that, the fleet shipmistress walked out of sick bay, she inwardly glad Catty and Pony were currently being helped by not only a team of nurses from the Defence Fleet Medical Unit (including Mie Seikou's twin sister, Hotaru, and her bond-mate Setsuna), but almost the whole contingent of the _Koishii Moroboshi_'s own medical staff. She boarded the turbolift for the research frigate's command bridge, she closing her eyes as she ran through what she did know of what just happened outside the Konton system.

Hoth Sunda had responded initially to a distress call from a civilian ship owned by a known Urusian conservative infonet broadcaster, Aruka Insa, which had been sent from somewhere near Machibusu. Arriving there, they found that the ship had been in some sort of altercation with at least fourteen other vessels, they then heading off in the direction of Konton. Heading to Konton, the crew of the _Koishii Moroboshi_ encountered a time-space nexus known to the Noukiites as "Yekk'ap'," the Dragon's Fire. As they were moving to investigate the phenomena, two squadrons' worth of surplus Urusian Defence Force corvettes attacked, pressing it all the way to wrecking a state-of-the-art capital ship and murdering most of the crew.

Most of all, Moroboshi Reiko and a considerable number of her companions, including four natives of Noukiios, PLUS Shoono Asuza and Fujisawa Mina, were missing.

The doors swept open to reveal the frigate's spacious command bridge. Standing there, along with most of the usual suspects from the old _Hasei'cha_, was a massive Oni in the uniform of an admiral in the Defence Force, he accompanied by his wife; the _Kashin_, which had been en route to Eiranha from Uru, had diverted to Konton when the _Hasei'cha_ had put out an all-call message concerning the _Koishii Moroboshi_.

"How bad is it?" Invader asked.

"Bad," Eluza stated as she waved Lum's father and mother to relax in the trio of central chairs in the middle of the bridge. "Sunda lost all but 279 of her crew when these people, WHOEVER they are, attacked her. We've no motive for the attack, no possible idea as to who orchestrated it or why . . .!"

"And worst of all, there's no sign of Reiko or any of her friends," Spea forlornly added as she and Amy looked up from a scanner on the starboard side of the bridge. "Not even any trace signs of DNA."

"They could still be alive, you mean?" Mrs. Invader said.

Spea and Amy exchanged a look before shaking their heads. "We can't say either way, ma'am," the latter warned. "Even we know next to nothing about the Yekk'ap' and what it can and can't do."

Rumy looked up from another station. "It appeared so infrequently during Henry's search for all of us that he never thought to deploy Rovers to investigate it during the few times it DID appear," she added.

Eluza and the Invaders took that in, and then tired sighs escaped from them all. "When was the last time this thing supposedly appeared?" the fleet shipmistress asked.

"Noukiite common date 4795; it was over Noukiios itself," Rumy answered.

Invader blinked as he heard that, and then a grunt escaped him. "That's odd . . . "

"What is, Dear?" his wife asked.

"That was the year Empress T'ich died."

Mrs. Invader and Eluza stared at him. "What would that have to do with this?!" the former asked.

The doors leading into the bridge snapped open. "I can explain that, sir!"

Heads came around to allow everyone to gaze on a bloodied but unbowed Ch'uchrakch'ut'a Yut'uch, he having staggered to the bridge with Hotaru's help. "I'm sorry, ma'am," the nurse apologized. "But the commander wanted to come up here and report to the Admiral directly. He said it was VERY important."

"You should be in bed, son . . .!" Invader stated.

"No time, sir!" Yut'uch cut him off, and then he pointed at the view screen displaying an image of the boiling Yekk'ap', with the _Kashin_ and the wrecked pieces of the _Koishii Moroboshi_ hovering off the _Hasei'cha_'s bow. "Your granddaughter and her friends are all alive, sir! They're in . . .!" He gargled as blood started to seep into his throat; a broken rib had punctured one of his lungs. "They're all there, sir!" he croaked out before he collapsed against Hotaru.

The nurse screamed out for intra-ship beaming right back into sickbay. As they vanished, Lufy walked over from the watchmistress' station to stand close to her former commanding officer and the Invaders. "All inside that thing?!" she wondered as she nodded back towards the image of the Yekk'ap'. "Lyna's Blessed Soul! Is this another freakin' version of the Outland we're dealing with here, Eluza?!"

The fleet shipmistress hummed. "Good question . . . "

"Eluza!"

Eyes snapped over to Rumy. "What is it?" Eluza asked.

"We're picking up a broadcast signal from the direction of Konton. It's on every civilian frequency, plus most of the known military frequencies from Uru and Fukunokami. It's visual, too."

"On screen!"

The image of the Yekk'ap' vanished, it replaced by what appeared to be a simple room, either in a planet-side building or aboard a ship. A black pennant with a red-gold-and-white alien symbol on it was draped behind the simple chair placed there. Seated on the chair was a beautiful middle-aged Seishin-Urusian woman with jet-black hair and light blue eyes, she dressed in very ornate robes. While she was unknown to Eluza, the look the woman had on her face reminded her very much of Seq Yethis the day he declared Toshitto free of the Urusian Union, officially launching the brief Imperial Counter-Revolution that was blasted into radioactive dust courtesy of the Sagussan Navy and the combined might of Earth's atomic powers.

Invader and his wife had no problems recognising her: "**_INSA?!_**"

The woman seemed to smile. "This is the Empress Insa of the Eo . . . "

* * *

"So what were that madwoman's demands?" Hoth Sunda asked.

She was currently seated in the _Hasei'cha_'s main meeting room, along with the Invaders, Mendou Shuutarou, Eluza and many of her old senior crew. It had been an hour since the broadcast from Konton had begun; it was still repeating itself over various frequencies. "She declared Konton to be the home world of her 'people,'" Rumy reported. "Also made territorial claims on BOTH sides of the Urusian-Noukiite frontier. No surprise here, Okusei, Tunchusei and Kurrusei were on the list." The scientist held up a finger to emphasise her next point. "But she ALSO added onto it Machibusu, Baiseki and Tamamono."

"That definitely will NOT happen!" Invader snarled.

"What else did they demand, Rumy-san?" Mendou wondered.

"Moroboshi Reiko."

Silence.

"**_WHAT?!_**" Sunda and the Invaders screamed.

"Why Reiko-san?!" Mendou demanded.

"Because she blames Reiko for the death of her son, Popok," Rumy replied. "And if anyone from Sagussa attempts to interfere, Insa promises that she will make use of knowledge and equipment she was secretly able to obtain from Skelad Industries to launch a direct attack against Sagussa itself. Not to mention anyone else who gets it into their heads to interfere with their pursuit of 'justice!'" she spat out.

"Didn't Kuk Numon promise she would get rid of everything Skelad tried to create?!" Sunda asked.

"Some things obviously slipped through her grasp," Eluza reported. "Unfortunate."

"And because of that, we can't take a risk of trying to do an end-run around her to save Reiko and her friends," Shildy added. "Right now, the safest place for them to be is inside the Yekk'ap'."

"We don't know what goes on inside that damned thing, Shildy!" Lufy objected.

"Can we send Rovers into them?" Spea asked.

The intercom chimed before anyone could answer. "Bridge to Eluza."

"Go, Rabby," Eluza called back.

"We just picked up two ships having arrived from the direction of Konton," Rabby reported. "One of them appears to be Aruka Insa's personal starship. The other one, though . . . "

"What is it, Rabby?" Shildy asked.

"Admiral Invader, it's your old personal cruiser."

Silence fell over the scene.

* * *

"This is true?"

"It appears to be so, Mister President."

Standing at the windows of his personal office, which opened up onto the beautiful expanse of Yekk'eng Palace, the President of the Dominion of Noukiios, Doctor K'u-It' Chusu-Ch'uonak, blinked as he took in what his prime minister had just reported, and then he slowly shuffled around -- the President was lame thanks to a botched assassination attempt during the long dictatorship of one of his predecessors, General Eyu-K'ung Chuip'-Neksai -- to give Colonel Eyu-It' Chusu-Nekrip' his full attention. "The Eo?" he breathed out as he remembered the history lessons about those monsters. "From where did they come?"

"From what we know, most of the people who might become 'subjects' of this lunatic were members of the various colonial militias from Machibusu, Tamamono and Baiseki," the prime minister reported. The former military officer had helped establish the modern extra-territorial intelligence force, the Nakkuk-nekk'ek'a, when he was still serving as a military officer during President Eyu-K'ung's first term in office. To this day, he kept an open ear on any sort of intelligence, especially when it concerned anything about Uru. "At most, the best estimates put the total population of this 'Eo Kingdom' at a million. And we do have detailed surveys of Konton, first dating from the Occupation and regularly updated by the Ip'ihu." Even if mainstream Noukiite society tended to shy away from speaking about the Outcastes in a positive way, Nekrip' knew how vital they were to the Dominion's defence. "If this whole thing came together, it could have only happened in the last year or so. No doubt prompted because the Maidens were so nice to let us use their Rovers to put a stop to all the raids over the border while we were shifting populations to the new colonies . . . "

A hum escaped Ch'uonak as he nodded in understanding. "So once they were deprived of their normal sport of attacking defenceless colonists, they decided to make a scene in some vain hope of provoking us." He turned to look outside his window at the city beyond. "But why demand Urusian colonies as well as our older colonies? That's bound to upset Lana, as much as what Yethis did twelve years ago . . . "

"They've lost all support from the more conservative elements in the Urusian Congress," Nekrip' coldly cut in. "When we shut the border down once and for all, whatever use the colonial militias had with those idiots in Onishuto effectively came to an end. That, tacked onto what Skelad just did . . .!"

The president sighed. "Is there a potential threat still against the Maidens?"

"Can't be ignored," the prime minister warned. The Nakkuk-nekk'ek'a had exchanged hard intelligence data with the Sagussan Intelligence Ministry since the Dominion and the Fifth Republic established relations.

Ch'uonak smiled as he glanced over his shoulder at his number-two man. "Do you have an idea how we can help the young Venerable P'yeknu and her friends get away from the Yekk'ap'?"

Nekrip' grinned. "The Shipwright-prime contacted me just before I came to see you," he said. "As soon as she got updated intelligence from the _Hasei'cha_ concerning what's now going on near Konton, she dispatched the prototype under automated control to get them out of that thing."

The president tensed, and then he sighed. "Couldn't be avoided."

"Agreed."

* * *

_"Is he okay?"_

_"Not good," Hanak'at' said as she gently shifted Ye-Echtech Yi Chusu Hachhich onto his right side. "He was shot through the right lung; if he continued to lay down on his back any longer, he would have eventually drowned in his own blood. Cauterizing the wound only ensures it doesn't flow out of his body. We have to get the lung repaired and quickly before he dies." She looked over to see Reiko asleep, her head cradled in Mina's lap. Noting one particular physical point of similarity between the famed admiral and her sister Lost Star, Hanak'at' smirked. "You can tell she's his daughter, alright."_

_"Only in their hichheksuch-euch, Lady Hanak'at'," Pen stated. Everyone was relaxing on the summit of South Mountain. K'yechsungi and Willow were both currently asleep, their heads lying in Fujino Hiromi's lap; the two had exhausted themselves carrying Hachhich, Sen, Uin and Ik'a to this location so everyone could be together while they tried to figure a way out of this place. Marina, who had carried Nukyek, was still awake; she was clearly in better shape when it came to carrying passengers with her flight powers._

_After saying that, the blue-haired woman gazed fondly on Marina's companion. "In all other ways, she is clearly her mother's daughter. Would you not agree with me, my friends?" she asked Uin and Sen._

_"Aye, that I would," Uin, a silver-haired, grey-eyed woman of the same age as her fellow veterans of the Battle of Seueukhek, noted. "Tell me, Lady T'ichu: Do you share?"_

_Mina's head jolted up in shock, and then she shrieked out, "_**WHAT?!**_"_

_Reiko's moans turned her lover's attention back to her. "Ladies, a humble request," Niap'yeng pleaded as she gave them a look. "You already share a bed with P'yeknu's father. Leave her to T'ichu."_

_"Agreed!" Mina hissed out as she glared them down. "I DON'T share!"_

_"Smart thinking, Mina!" Marina said with a smirk. "Rei's one pretty gorgeous lady!"_

_"Marina," Nukyek trilled as she glared at the hybrid with a look that would have had the servants at the Yekk'eng Palace running for the hills. "Are you attempting to play matchmaker with MY daughter?!"_

_"No, Nukyek, I'm just defending Mina's right to hang onto her!" the hybrid answered._

_Laughter flowed over the scene, and then everyone blinked as the image of Ch'uokyuk in the sky overhead seemed to darken for a moment. "What in Koori's name . . .?" Yuri gasped as people looked up._

_Eyes turned heavenward as a dark shape seemed to eclipse that bright sun for a moment. That shape soon melted into the bow's-on view of a sleek-looking starship possessing the hull of a racing schooner and solar sail masts projecting from the tops, both sides at the middle, and from the keel. At the very front end of the ship was a beautiful dragon figurehead, its maw open as if it was about to spew forth a storm of fire to douse whatever had angered it. "A Noukiite scoutship?!" Asuza gasped._

_Everyone who could move stood up to watch as the scoutship seemed to come to a stop over Yekna's downtown area for a moment before the bow turned towards South Mountain. The ship slowly sailed over to come to a stop due east of their location, invisible retro-thrusters ensuring she was holding position. Then, a hatchway opened on the ship's side as a laser gangway formed, reaching out to come to a landing right next to the sleeping Reiko. Everyone stared at it for a moment, and then Marina sighed._

_"Look's like our ride's here, guys."_

* * *

"Something flew INTO the Yekk'ap'?!"

"I think so, Eluza," Rumy reported. The _Hasei'cha_ and the _Kashin_ were currently a light-hour away from the Dragon's Breath, they being trailed by the two Eo ships. While firepower-wise, neither of the pirates' vessels would survive a shooting match with either the Sagussan frigate or the Urusian battlewagon, a live-time broadcast from Aruka Insa -- she either on Konton or aboard one of the ships -- warning them not to try any "tricks" lest Sagussa itself suffer the consequences had effectively ensured any examination of whatever it was that had soared into the Yekk'ap' would be delayed. Even more, Rovers were reporting other Eo ships were seeding the area around the Konton system with replicating mines, similar to what the Zephyrites employed to keep their frontiers secure. "It came from the general direction of Noukiios itself, but it was travelling so fast -- even by OUR standards! -- that I couldn't get a clear lock on it."

"Must be this 'secret' project Yuu and her friends are involved in," Lufy noted.

The fleet shipmistress took that in, and then she nodded. Given her current position as Inspector General of the Sagussan Navy, she had access to a lot of highly sensitive materials dealing with a wide range of subjects. And while every Sagussan knew the Fifth Republic had willingly helped terraform ten new colony planets for the Dominion of Noukiios, only a select few in External Affairs, Intelligence and Fleet Engineering were privy to all that was going on concerning every aspect of that project. All she did knew were the names of four Daishi'cha who were directly involved: Yuu, the first Elder Mother of Sagussa; her bond-mate Mio, the first Sagussan to have also Crossed Over and become a Nendo-kata; plus Izuminodokyuu and her bond-mate Yui, two of the Classmates Clique who had been involved in the first contact with Newgrange. All four of them currently resided on one of the new Noukiite colony planets, Hukusei.

"What did you scan from it, Rumy?"

"I think it was a Noukiite ship, probably a scout-class vessel," the scientist replied. "But its speed was WAY over what is normal for a Noukiite ship of ANY class we're aware of!"

Eluza hummed as she considered what she had just been told, and then she looked at Amy. "Alter course into Noukiite space," she ordered. "Let's circle around our pursuers and double back to the Yekk'ap'."

"Hai!"

_Hasei'cha_ heeled over to starboard, she turning coreward towards the general direction of Kurrusei.

* * *

"She's trying to probe back through them, Boss."

"I see that," Invader grunted as the bridge crew of the _Kashin_ -- they currently augmented by some of the surviving crew of the _Koishii Moroboshi_ -- watched the Sagussan frigate disappear into Noukiite space. "Let's do the opposite of what she's doing. Pilot, turn us in the general direction of Oyatsui!"

"Yes, sir!"

The _Kashin_ banked port towards the frontier with Fukunokami space. Behind her, both Eo ships seemed to pause for a moment, and then they shifted starboard in pursuit of the _Hasei'cha_. The sensor officer on the Urusian ship noted this, and then he called over to Invader, "They're both going after them, Boss."

"Okay," Invader said with a smirk. "Cloak the ship, then take us back towards Konton."

In a second, the _Kashin_ vanished from sight.

* * *

_"Admiral . . .?"_

_A pained moan escaped him as light seemed to shine through his closed eyelids._

_"Admiral?!"_

_Dark brown eyes snapped open as the middle-aged man with the pony-tailed, grey-streaked black hair, moustache and goatee lying now on the diagnostic bed found himself staring at a metal deckhead covered in exposed pipes and other conduits. The colours around him were a mixture of whites and soft pastels, worlds different from the surgeons' cockpits he was normally used to on spaceships. Taking a deep breath, he moaned as an ache seemed to burn through his right side, where he had been shot. Before he could say or do anything more, a familiar face appeared in his line of sight. "Hello, Kyesuo," Pen gently hailed._

_Hachhich blinked for a moment, and then he rasped out, "What happened? Did we win?"_

_"We did," Pen assured him. "But it was with cost. Much greater than we could ever have dreamed."_

_The admiral took that in, and then he tensed on seeing another woman approach. A silver-haired girl looking distantly like Uin, though her cheek tattoos were simple silver dots. She was dressed in fine silver and jade green cloth, she projecting the demeanour of a priestess despite her youth. "Heaven's blessings on you, Venerable Lord Admiral," she greeted him in a curious dialect whose origins he found almost impossible to pinpoint. "Even if you were prepared to face the Ch'uoeuk the day you confronted the Eo over Seueukhek, it pleases me very much -- as much as it does your concubines . . . " she added as she gazed on Pen, who had the decency to look sheepish, before she turned back to him. "To see you alive and well."_

_Hachhich took a moment to absorb that, and then he said, "I was shot through the lung. By all rights, I should have faced the Ch'uoeuk at the Two Portals for the Final Judgement. How did . . .?"_

_"The Yekk'ap' saved you, Venerable Lord Admiral," the newcomer reported. "It is a place beyond what we understand of Space and Time. In effect, it kept you, not to mention the Ladies Pen, Sen and Uin, out of the normal flow of time until a chance came that we could have rescued you. That we have done."_

_"Many years have passed outside the Yekk'ap', Kyesuo," Pen added._

_"How many?"_

_"Over five centuries," Pen reported. "It's the year 5121."_

_Silence._

_"Fifty-one-twenty-one . . .?" the admiral gasped, his face almost white, and then he winced as fresh pain lanced through his lungs, his face reddening with agony as he tried to keep breathing even though doing so was making his chest burn like nothing else he had ever experienced. "Damn . . .!"_

_"Calm yourself, Venerable," the newcomer urged. "You're alive, but you're pushing it right now. Fortunately, medical science has developed enough to allow us to heal you, but it's still too soon."_

_He gritted his teeth. "It might have been better for me to have died . . . "_

_"Don't say that, love!" Pen cried out. "Your task isn't done yet!"_

_Hachhich stopped as his concubine's statement surged through him, and then he turned to stare at her. "What did you just say . . .?" he demanded, his voice shot with pain._

_"The Eo still exist," she reported. _

* * *

_Sometime later -- within the Yekk'ap', even the Sagussan-designed chronometers weren't working -- a door leading into a very advanced pilotage platform opened, revealing a healthier-looking Ye-Echtech Yi Chusu Hachhich, he dressed in simple, yet flattering robes provided for him thanks to the ship's clothing replicators. Stepping onto the bridge, with Pen and Sister Niap'yeng behind him, he stopped to take in the measure of the other people who had, for one reason or another, been trapped by the Dragon's Breath._

_Uin and Sen, he knew of, of course._

_With them were two other Noukiite women bearing the more modern tattoos of his lovers' very own level of the Ten Orders, one of whom had the most curious-shaped ears he had EVER seen on anyone._

_An elderly Noukiite man with the pointed ears of a Vosian, his eyes closed to mark his blindness, he possessing the bearing of a very experienced warrior, a well-crafted cane-sword in his hand._

_A green-haired Oni-Urusian girl who gave him a respectful bow, she currently standing beside a humanoid girl who appeared to be like one of the Fukunokami. Without the odd-shaped ears._

_A blue-haired native of the moon of Neptune._

_Another girl like the Oni-Urusian's companion, though possessing long brown hair instead of short black, she looking as if she was a bard._

_Yet another young woman of that same race -- Wait! Wasn't there another race living in the same star system as Neptune? -- she with short brown hair and glasses, standing close to the command chair._

_A man, most likely of the same race, younger than Hachhich himself but older than the majority of those here now, with glasses and a shaved head, he standing beside the Tritonian girl. He, wearing clothes hinting he was a religious official, moved to give the admiral what looked like a blessing._

_Another Oni-Urusian woman with a sword and dressed in black leather from neck to toe, she possessing the darker skin of a Yehisrite and the look of someone experienced in fighting for everything she had._

_And finally, two blue-haired Noukiite women, one seated in the central chair on the pilotage, the other standing behind her chair. Both looked as if they could be twins save for the seated one being older and bearing the proper caste tattoos and robes of Nehech royalty . . ._

_And the younger one having been born with Hachhich's very own head ridge pattern!_

_Taking a moment to absorb what he was looking at, the admiral gazed at Niap'yeng. The priestess was giving him a reassuring smile. "It is all true, then?" he asked._

_"It is," she reported._

_Nodding, he moved to stand before the seated woman, and then he dropped to one knee as he reached for her offered hand. He leaned in to kiss the Ring of State the empress had on her finger; it was the one piece of jewellery she had kept with herself when Ik'a had whisked her away from Suchkyuk. Gazing up into her eyes, he asked, "May I know my liege lady's name so I may give my loyalty to her?"_

_Nukyek sighed. "Using the standard style our brothers and sisters use these days, I am Ei-T'ich Yesu-Nukyek, Lord Admiral. When I 'died,' I was given the posthumous name 'T'yekhek.'" She smiled as her eyes turned up to the younger girl standing behind her chair. "And while we were both born many years apart in different parts of Suchkyuk, it appears someone believed we both were worthy enough to -- through our very own DNA taken from personal belongings preserved carefully over the years -- help give birth to this beautiful woman standing behind me now. In the new style, she is Ye-Nehek Yesu-P'yeknu, Lord Admiral."_

_Hachhich took that in, and then he stood up to gaze intently at her. "The good sister has told me that you have lived most of your life on a different planet than ours. Is that true?"_

_"It is," Reiko replied._

_"And thus, that explains your family name."_

_"Yes. In the language of my father, I am called 'Moroboshi Reiko.'"_

_Hachhich blinked, and then he tried to mimic her name. "'Moroposhi Reik'o?'" he said, and then he shook his head. "Truly odd! I prefer 'P'yeknu' instead; it SOUNDS normal!" As amused snickers escaped his battle adjutants, he nodded. "Was what the good sister also said about the man who welcomed you into his family as his own true? That he is the Euk Hisehek?"_

_"He is that," Reiko admitted, a shy smile crossing her face._

_The admiral considered that for a moment, and then he looked around the pilotage. "And it was the Maidens themselves who built this ship for us?" he asked._

_"They did," Reiko answered, and then she shrugged. "I . . .! Damn!" she hissed before she started to laugh. "I don't even know what to call you. EITHER of you!" she added as she stared at Nukyek. "When I dreamt of you, I called you 'Papa' and 'Mama,' but I don't think I could make myself do that now . . . "_

_Hachhich roared with laughter. "Don't worry about it, P'yeknu!" he assured her before he stared at his adjutants. "I wasn't expecting to become a father until the war with the Eo was over and I could take my lovers to my estate in Nichsuo so we could enjoy some peace and I could write my poems!" He stared at the woman in the captain's chair. "And much that I would not presume to speak for Her Majesty, I believe she would like to make her own decision concerning what relations she has with you on her own time."_

_"I would," the empress stated before she stood up. "But before we decide to deal with matters of that nature, there is the urgent matter of our leaving the embrace of the Yekk'ap'. Unfortunately, this new generation of Eo have decided to make that task difficult for us." She looked over. "Marina, would you please replay the message that was saved in the communications unit when this ship was sent here?"_

_"Sure thing," the hybrid said as she walked over to tap a couple controls._

_The view screen at the front of the pilotage switched on, revealing the image of a chestnut brown-haired Gomianite-born woman, she dressed in her normal work jumpsuit. "Hello, Reiko-chan, minna," Yuu greeted them. "This is a warning we're containing with the_ Odyssey _when we send her out to you . . . "_

_The message took twenty minutes to replay. Hachhich remained silent as he took in the information Sagussa's first Elder Mother had obtained through her contacts in the Noukiite central government. At the end of it, he grimly nodded before he turned to gaze on Niap'yeng. "So this self-professed 'Empress' of the Eo seeks P'yeknu's head because of her slain son," he muttered as a hand came up to stroke his beard. "A son legitimately accused of acts of sedition and treason by the government of his people."_

_"Most likely," Niap'yeng noted before she gazed knowingly at K'yechsungi._

_Willow quickly noticed that look, and then she blanched as it hit her. "Nia, you mean you . . .?!" she sputtered out before she pointed at the sin-destroyer. "You made HER kill Popok?!"_

_The priestess was nonplussed. "Did you honestly expect me to simply stand back and let the little puppy try to kill P'yeknu, Aya?" she wondered as she indicated Reiko with a wave of her hand._

_"What's this?!" Reiko demanded._

_K'yechsungi explained, "Skelad Lara's assistant, Aruka Popok, conspired to slay you, P'yeknu, because he feared -- rightly so -- your re-baptism as a Yekhu would generate public acceptance on Noukiios and elsewhere of the Naihu Emancipation -- and with it, the Ip'ihu Inclusion -- the Council of Sages and the current Dominion government in Noukiyek wishes to initiate in the next year."_

_Marina blinked as she took that in, and then she stared at the sin-destroyer. "Lady, if you think even the_ moderates _on Uru are going to accept THAT, you're crazy!"_

_"Who are these Ip'ihu?" Hachhich wondered._

_"Outcastes from the Ten Orders, Lord Admiral," Niap'yeng explained, and then her eyes fixed on Nukyek. "Spiritual -- and in many ways, blood -- descendants of many of the Ch'eksung Righteous Army that rose to destroy the initial attempts by the Urusians to subvert your husband's rule, Your Majesty."_

_"Why have they been declared outcastes?" the empress demanded._

_"Because after the Liberation War, they couldn't bring themselves to slide back into their ancestral castes, Nukyek-cha," Marina explained. "Most of the early Ip'ihu were Naihu before the Occupation began."_

_"What is the matter with being Naihu?" Pen asked._

_"After the Liberation War, the Naihu was changed into a class of chattel slaves, Pen," Reiko answered. "It was one of the many 'reforms' the Urusians forced on us many Noukiites eventually came to accept." She shrugged. "When I was created, I was baptized as a Naihu." She ignored the stunned looks on Hachhich's and Nukyek's faces as she nodded towards Niap'yeng. "When Niap'yeng, Hanak'at', K'yechsungi and 496 other girls were kidnapped from their families after birth, they were re-baptized as Naihu, too; we were all part of a special esper-slave project started by some businessmen to help promote labourer commerce between Noukiios and other planets." A snort. "If it wasn't for my adopted father, the chances were there I might've been sold off to some Urusian Imperial prince like Seq Yethis; the Masters were even considering selling some of us off to them." A shake of the head. "Stupid idiots."_

_"Are these monsters still alive?" Hachhich asked, his voice flat with outrage._

_"They were all killed by the Euk Hisehek, Lord Admiral," Niap'yeng reported._

_Marina nodded in approval. "Good man."_

_"Indeed," Nukyek added. "When I have the chance to speak to the Most Venerable One, I will thank him for the justice he brought to Noukiios the day the child born of my blood was freed from such beasts."_

_Reiko giggled. "I think you'll make Dad blush right to his toes if you EVER call him THAT!"_

_Laughter echoed through the_ Odyssey_'s control platform. Uin walked up to her lover and leader, bowing her head respectfully. "My Lord Admiral, the ship is extremely well armed for her size and class," she reported. "The weapons are all controlled by combat computers with reaction times far in excess of anything we're used to. They were programmed thoroughly with intelligence on the Eo and their predecessors by both the intelligence agency of our home world's current government and the Maidens. All sail controls are likewise automated. We can pilot the ship ourselves right back to Noukiios if we so wish."_

_Hachhich took that in, and then he nodded. "Stations!"_

_Pen, Uin and Sen headed over to the helm, weapons and sensory stations respectfully. "Want help?" Willow asked as she approached the admiral. "I'm good with small ship work."_

_"You will help aid in the deaths of your fellow Urusians, child," Hachhich warned._

_Willow's eyes narrowed dangerously. "I wouldn't claim backstabbing slime like THEM as 'Urusians,' Venerable," she hissed as her body began to glow with the plasma bolt powers she had been born with. "They decided to walk away from my people because they couldn't stand the fact that we wouldn't be sheep to the Imperial Round anymore. They're traitors to my people, Venerable, just like their predecessors you had to deal with were traitors to my people. I won't weep over ANY of them!"_

_The admiral took that in, and then he nodded. Willow headed over to help with navigation. "I'm in on this, too," Marina said as she walked over to help Uin with weapons._

_"Marina . . . " Nukyek began._

_The hybrid stopped as she winked playfully at her long-time companion. "Hey, I vowed I'd get you back home, remember?" she scolded before she turned back to the station she stood before to examine the controls._

_"We're all a part of this, Admiral," Megane spoke up. "We'll get the medical station ready."_

_"There might be need of a boarding party, too," Ik'a warned._

_"We would like that."_

_Eyes locked on K'yechsungi. "Why, Lady?" Hachhich asked._

_The sin-destroyer smiled. "When we feasted on Popok's soul, we found the taste most enjoyable," she stated. "We now wish to see how his mother's soul will taste to us."_

_People paled as they took in her words. "We best do as she asks, Venerable," Hanak'at' warned._

_"Why?!" Reiko asked._

_The red-haired Lost Star smirked as she gazed on her questioner. "When Chai-yu gets to be like_ that_, P'yeknu, she won't be happy until she's satisfied."_

_"If we are not appeased, we become irritable," K'yechsungi added with all honesty._

_Wary looks were exchanged. "I think we best keep it in mind, Admiral," Nukyek warned._

_"Indeed," Hachhich breathed out, he nodding._

* * *

"Boss . . .!"

"I see them," Invader growled. "They're not giving up, are they?!"

"By the looks of it," Sunda muttered as the bridge crew of the _Kashin_ stared at the boiling image of the Yekk'ap', it now several kilometres off the cloaked bow of the battlewagon. Target icons on the tactical screen over the main view ports indicated the two Eo ships that had tried to pursue _Hasei'cha_ had actually doubled back to keep close watch over the Dragon's Breath just in case the Sagussans or someone else attempted a rescue. "Any sign of the _Hasei'cha_, Lookout?" she asked.

"None, ma'am," the sensor officer reported. "If they're cloaked, they're running totally silent."

The captain and the admiral exchanged a look, and then they nodded. Cloaked Sagussan ships, for the most part, could be picked up by the traces of tachytron radiation -- energy produced by the intermingling of parallel dimensions -- emitted from their main engines and power dynamos. If _Hasei'cha_ was near, it was most likely Eluza was approaching at sub-light speed, keeping to standard impulse drive, which could effectively be cloaked without chance of detection. "Alright, then," Invader growled. "Let's . . . "

"Wait!" the sensor officer yelped. "New contact!"

"Where?!" Sunda demanded.

"It's coming OUT of the Dragon's Breath itself, Captain! Noukiite scout-class ship!"

"WHAT?!" Invader screamed. "How the hell did they . . .?!"

"Sir, the Eo ships just spotted them!"

Eyes locked on the tactical screen. "Who is that, anyway?" Mendou Shuutarou demanded.

* * *

Sailing serenely out of the Dragon's Breath, the _Odyssey_ seemed not to care as the two cigar-shaped Urusian-built craft -- both ships still coloured in orange-gold with tiger stripes despite their currently no longer serving anyone loyal to the government in Onishuto -- turned towards her. In the wake of the solar-sail scout's departure, the Yekk'ap' seemed to glow bright white for a moment before it vanished from space. No reaction from the _Odyssey_ as her dragon's head prow turned in the general direction of the Ch'uokyuk system as the gallants and staysails, the elements of the ship's drive system needed to cut in warp, began to deploy. By then, the smaller of the Eo ships -- Aruka Insa's former yacht, a vessel about half the size of the personal cruiser once owned by Redet Invader before he had it decommissioned in the wake of the Imperial Counter-Revolution -- had swung onto a parallel course, it closing in on the Noukiite ship from port aft.

* * *

"Concussion missile tubes loaded and primed, ready for one-second silent running before targeting scans begin and they arm," Marina reported. "If these bozos get any closer, we'll have to reprogram them."

"Keep them as they are, Lady Marina," Hachhich ordered.

"Main plasma cannon primed and ready, but conduits to the emitter are closed to prevent being detected by enemy ships," Uin added. "However, if what the computers report about the enemy craft is true, they're probably attacking us blind. Even with the Yekk'ap' closed, local space is still greatly disturbed."

"What of our scanners, Sen?" Reiko asked.

"Operational; the computers are compensating for the many disturbances in the space-time fabric," Sen noted. "We're even getting life-sign scans on both enemy ships. This is worlds better than what we had back at Seueukhek," she added as she gazed on her lover. "The smaller one has about fifty aboard her. The larger ship has at least six hundred. If we're going to board that second one, the odds aren't good."

The admiral took that in, and then he smirked. "She's on the smaller ship."

"How can you be sure?" Reiko asked.

"She's arrogant, this Aruka Insa," Hachhich stated. "She believed right from the start that by taking you 'hostage' thanks to the Yekk'ap', she could make the Maidens do her bidding." He pointed to the image on the forward view screen. "The other ship used to belong to your mother's father, correct?"

"Yes."

"If she only joined the Eo recently, she wouldn't be used to any other ship than her own."

"IF she's out here," Reiko warned.

"She is here."

Eyes locked on K'yechsungi. There was a feral grin on the sin-destroyer's face; her eyes were locked on something off _Odyssey_'s port side. "On which ship, Lady?" Hachhich asked.

"The closer one to us," K'yechsungi replied. "She is angry, that one. It excites us."

"Excellent," Hachhich purred.

* * *

"Building techniques are mostly Noukiite, but the weapons and other equipment's clearly ours, Eluza," Rumy reported. The cloaked _Hasei'cha_ was right behind the two Eo ships; thanks to her greater speed and her ability to slip in and out of tachytron space, the Sagussan ship had moved past the pirate vessels and positioned herself very close to the Yekk'ap', thus taking a chance to do a detailed scan of the phenomena to ascertain how they could rescue Reiko and her friends from its embrace. When _Odyssey_ emerged and the Eo ships began to follow her, it had been child's play to give pursuit without detection. "She's got gallants and staysails ready to deploy right now, yet . . . " Her voice trailed off for a second. "Odd."

"What is it, Rumy?" Lufy asked.

"The gallants are turned around, Lufy!" the science officer reported. "If they deploy . . .!"

* * *

"LET FLY!" Hachhich barked.

* * *

On the _Odyssey_, the gallant sails, connecting the topmast to the side masts in rectangular bands, rolled out. In normal operation, the absorbent sides, where particles would be drawn in for funnelling into the reactor spaces, would always face the direction of the bow. This time, however, they were facing aft. Once they started to glow as particles were drawn in, a breaking effect came into play, stopping the scout ship just as her pursuer soared past, the bridge crew not realising what was happening until it was too late.

Hatches on the scout ship's flanks opened as a phalanx of six concussion missiles raced out, their targeting scanners and cobalt warheads activating a second after they cleared the tubes. The first pair detonated on hitting the Eo ship's deflector shields, creating enough kinetic energy to overload the generators and collapse them, thus allowing the remaining four to race past and strike home. In a curious replay of what had happened to the _Koishii Moroboshi_ many hours earlier, the engine spaces were blasted away as half the ship was vented to the outside vacuum. The ship began to drift to port as all primary power was lost, plunging the still-habitable sections of Insa's yacht into darkness.

As her crew quickly saw what happened, the larger Eo ship was made to turn immediately to bring its forward weapons to bear on the _Odyssey_. Before the order to fire could be given, space behind her fizzled into the tan bulk of the _Hasei'cha_, her own particle guns and concussion missiles bearing on target. As the first salvo from the Sagussan frigate slammed into the Eo ship's shields, _Kashin_ appeared to her port, her long guns already deployed and bearing on target. After several more salvoes from the attacking warships, the shields of Invader's old cruiser collapsed in a shower of sparks and energy. Two concussion missiles from _Hasei'cha_ and a storm of photon torpedoes from _Kashin_ mercilessly pulverized the cruiser's defenceless hull, making her warp drive detonate in a billowing flower of antimatter gone insane.

* * *

A moan echoed through the smoke-filled space as the sound of transporters echoed from aft. As the few crew who had not died from the impact of _Odyssey_'s attack began to stir, footfalls echoed on the deck.

"What do we do with them?" a woman with a mixed batch of accents asked.

"They are pirates," another woman, clearly Noukiite though speaking with an old-sounding accent, answered. "The Ch'uoeuk will be more than happy to decide their fate."

"Fair 'nuff."

Aruka Insa's deep blue eyes fluttered open as the hissing noise of swords leaving their scabbards echoed throughout the bridge. As she tried to move her arm towards her holstered pistol, grunts and cries of mortal pain began to assault her ears as the boarding crew began their gristly work. She knew what that declaration meant. Piracy, since the days of the Emperor Hechne and that damned admiral who had wiped out the original Eo, had always been treated as a capital crime offence by Noukiite authorities.

Her fate was sealed.

Still . . .

As her left hand shifted towards her belt so she could get at the remote control so she could use her ship's self-destruct mechanism, a VERY sharp sword came down to punch through her wrist. Insa shrieked as she tried to roll away from whoever just cut off her hand, her voice then being cut off as someone or something grabbed her tightly by the throat to yank her straight up, holding her well off the deck.

"Peace be with you, Aruka Insa," a strange woman's voice hailed as the wounded Urusian's eyes fluttered open to gaze on the shadow-cloaked image of a dark-haired Noukiite woman.

One with ears just like Shogai Dakejinzou's.

A cold fist materialised in Insa's heart as she realised who this woman was.

Eyu-Teo Yecho-K'yechsungi. The Bandit Slayer of Taktek. Sin-Eater of the Lost Stars of Noukiios.

A portable light was activated, allowing the scene to be lit up even more. Insa shuddered as her eyes turned left, she finding herself gazing on a grinning green-haired Oni woman with the skin colour of a Yehisrite, she dressed in black from neck to toe, a blood-tipped eunuch's sword in hand. Insa felt a lump in her throat as the Oni moved to lick the blood off the shining blade's flanks, her dark brown eyes smoking with sensuous joy as she moved to trace that blood over her lips. "Doesn't taste too bad," she noted in that queer voice with its odd mix of accents. Some parts Oni, some parts Yehisrite . . .

"Muzuka Marina . . . " Insa rasped.

A silver-haired Noukiite woman stepped up to stand behind Marina. "You're known, Lady."

"Yeah, Uin, 'fraid I am," the hybrid admitted, and then she gazed on K'yechsungi. "Hungry, K'yech?"

"We are," the sin-destroyer purred as she leaned up to gaze into Insa's face. "You accused our friend P'yeknu of the death of your son Popok, Insa. You did not know the truth. It was WE who killed him, not P'yeknu. And for the insult delivered onto our friend and to us, we will now punish you."

Insa's eyes went wide as K'yechsungi's mouth stretched open, a hissing noise escaping her.

* * *

"The tactics were incredibly sound," Sunda noted.

"That they were," Invader agreed. The _Kashin_ and the _Hasei'cha_ were hovering some distance from the _Odyssey_ and Aruka Insa's crippled yacht. "Any scans of what's going on inside, Lookout?"

"Scanners still hazed up somewhat, Boss," the sensor officer reported.

"_Hasei'cha_ might know what's going on," Sunda stated.

"Okay, then. Signals, open a . . .!"

"Boss!" the communications officer barked out. "Signal from the Noukiite ship."

"On screen!" Invader ordered.

The tactical screen at the front of the bridge flicked off for a second before turning back on, it showing the image of a bald Terran man with glasses. "Aisuru!" Mendou Shuutarou gasped on recognising his old classmate. "What's going on here?! How on Earth did you . . .?!"

The monk raised his hand to stop his friend's tirade. "Relax, Shuutarou. We're alright."

"Wait a second, son!" Invader cut in. "Reiko-chan's not trained in any sort of ship-borne warfare tactics! How the devil did you get the drop on these bastards, anyway?!"

"It's okay, Granddad," Reiko scolded as she leaned into the camera's angle of view. "We had help!"

"Reiko-san!" Mendou breathed out. "But still . . . "

"You addressed this one as your grandfather, P'yeknu?"

Noukiite voice, female, old accent. "Yes, I did," Reiko said as she looked behind her.

Megane stepped aside as a regal visage walked into view. Seeing her, gasps echoed through the _Kashin_'s bridge as people recognised who she was -- or if they didn't realise who she was, they were quick to see the many similarities between Moroboshi Reiko and this woman. Invader's jaw nearly hit the deck in shock as his eyes took in the newcomer's features, and then he sputtered out, "Empress T'ich . . .?"

Reiko glared him down. "Granddad!" she snapped. "That's not how . . .!"

"Enough, P'yeknu," Nukyek scolded her as Invader's arms snapped up to shield his face from his angry granddaughter's glare. "He can be taught the proper forms at another time." She turned back to Invader. "Lord Redet, under the Piracy Laws enacted by our noble ancestor, the Suhek Emperor, your countrywoman Aruka Insa, the 'Empress of the Eo,' was put to death in answer to her many crimes against both our blood-child, the Venerable Ye-Nehek Yesu-P'yeknu, as well as your many countrymen who were lost when our blood-child's late sister's namesake ship was destroyed. If you want her body back, you may have it, as well as those of her servants we found on her ship, all of whom were dealt with as piracy should ALWAYS be dealt with."

"I . . .!" Invader began, and then he rapidly nodded. The Noukiite empress reminded him a little too much of his own wife when she was on a tear. "On behalf of the Urusian Union, I thank you, Your Majesty, for your assistance in this matter. We'll be more than happy to deal with what's left of that lot!"

"Excellent." Her eyes narrowed dangerously as she then pointed a warning finger at him. "And know this well, so you may inform your President Lana, Lord Redet: my people's patience at your people's infantile unwillingness to behave as RESPONSIBLE beings should when dealing with the other civilised races in this galaxy has ALSO come to an END! Whatever Eo remain on Konton are YOUR responsibility, not ours. Do with them what you will, but make it VERY clear to ALL your kind: the planets our lost children settled in the wake of the ILLEGAL annexation of Noukiios by your pathetic empire have always been, are, and will always be, OURS! Any further action against my people because of that will have the SEVEREST of consequences!"

She turned and marched out of the camera's range. Reiko watched her go, and then she turned back to gaze at Invader. "You okay, Granddad?" she asked, a wry grin crossing her face.

"Ah . . . s-somewhat," the admiral stuttered.

"Reiko-san, your mother is a very formidable woman," Mendou noted.

"Hai, she is that," Reiko breathed out, and then she smirked. "Oh, by the by: now that you've met one of my mothers, now it's time for you to meet one of my fathers, too." She looked over. "Sir?"

Invader's jaw hit the deck. "WHAT?!"

Everyone else's eyes nearly shot out of their skulls as the fierce visage of a grim Noukiite warrior appeared to Reiko's right, she side-stepping over so he could gaze on the "Kashin's" bridge. For many of the officers, this man needed no introduction; even if he was Noukiite, his tactics in the First Eo War were always studied at the Urusian Defence Force Academy. "Admiral Yi . . .!" Sunda gasped.

Hachhich's eyes locked on her for a moment. "You were the war-leader of the ship named after P'yeknu's lost sister, were you not?" he asked, his voice neutral.

Sunda blinked, and then she nodded. "Yes, sir . . . "

His face creased as an approving smile crossed it. "The Venerable Sister Niap'yeng told me that you dealt with P'yeknu with honour," he said. "We were more than happy to avenge the deaths of your good crew when we dealt with Aruka Insa and her pirate friends." He laughed. "And when the day comes, I'll gladly invite both you and the Fat One there . . . " -- he nodded towards Invader -- "To my estate so I can introduce you both to the sweet joys of etahena and we can tell all our war stories!"

"HEY!" Invader yelped. He was NOT fat!

Reiko stared at him. "Granddad, you HAVE to loose some weight!"

Snickers began to escape many of the bridge crew as Invader tried to hide himself yet again from his granddaughter's condescending look. "I look forward to that day, Admiral," Sunda vowed.

Hachhich waved. "I'll remember that, Captain!"

The airwaves echoed with relieved laughter.

* * *

"How is he, Shinobu?"

"Resting now," Shinobu stated as she pulled her hand away from the dozing Ataru's face. The Daite'cha of Sagussa had been moved back into his bedroom so the nurse could examine him more. "Did you manage to call Mizuno-sensei so she could come over here to examine him more?"

Lum nodded. "Tcha! She should be here . . .!"

Her voice was cut off on hearing a transporter beam echo through the house. "Eh?!" the Oni gasped as she flew out of the bedroom to hear footsteps echo from the stairs. She stopped on seeing who was leading the small procession that had just beamed down from orbit. "**_REIKO!_**"

Reiko lightly smiled as her sobbing mother flew into her arms.

_**To Be Continued . . .!**_

* * *

**SERIES INTRODUCTION (MK III)** or **WE'VE COME A LONG WAY BACK TO THE BEGINNING!**

March, 2007 . . .

It has been a VERY long time since the basic ideas concerning this series started to come to me when I was in the midst of my second teaching job in the Republic of Korea, way back in 1997. Considering how this series had actually begun, I suppose it's not so surprising that it's had so many starts and stops since I wrote the first version of _School's On_ way back when.

Unlike many of the other concepts introduced in _The Senior Year_, the idea of Moroboshi Reiko was something of a late addition. Mike Smith and I had pretty much fleshed out most of the other ideas that went into _The Senior Year_ well before we started writing out the series in good and putting it out over the Internet in early 1996. The idea of an alien child Ataru would adopt as his own, a child from a world which didn't enjoy good relations with Lum's people, was something that came to me just as we were about to start rewriting _The Senior Year_ from script to prose format. It didn't take me long to flesh Reiko out for her first main appearance in _Arrive Reiko-chan_, then insert her into future stories.

Unlike many of the other characters in the series, I never took the opportunity to talk things over with Mike about Reiko during the many times I drove from Welland (my hometown) to Niagara-on-the-Lake (Mike's hometown) so we could brainstorm the plots and ideas for what eventually became _The Senior Year_ (to say anything of our _first_ planned sequel series to TSY, _Twenty Years Later_).

However, it would take my nine-year odyssey to Korea to flesh out the world and people she came from.

This series has had two starts since it first began appearing in the R.A.A.C. files. First was, as I said in the beginning, back in 1997 when I was teaching in Kwang'yang. That lasted for about two years (by then, I was in Kyoungju) until I pretty much lost interest and switched my fanfic writing attention over to _Illusions_. The second start came years later, when I had run out of steam with _Illusions_ and decided to try it again. That only lasted until my mother's death in 2001, when I lost heart for a while until the events of 11 September 2001 led me down into writing _Lonely Souls_. And now, after getting osteomyelitis, losing a toe, finding out I was diabetic, and having to come back to Canada from Korea, I'm at it again.

Someone -- Muchach or Lyna, maybe? -- must be telling me something.

How long will this one last?

Who knows . . **.  
**

* * *

**WRITER'S NOTES:**

1) This story occurs in the weeks after the TSY story _Towards The Unstoppable Future_.

2) Quick pronunciation note about Noukiite terms: if an apostrophe follows a consonant, it's spoken with a lot of force behind it, as if you were snapping the sound. Noukiite vowels are the same as in Japanese, but when one encounters words spoken in Ryekkyuk dialect, one encounters different "o" and "u" sounds. The **o'** sound is similar to the "o" in "hot." The **u'** sound is similar to the "ou" in "could."

3) To better understand Noukiite names, one must know two things: the caste prefix before the family name and the birth order prefix before the given name.

Caste prefixes go as follows (listed by their place in the Ten Orders):

**Ye-** . . . Yekhu (priests and priestesses)  
**K'e-** . . . K'et'hu (mobile missionaries)  
**Ei-** . . . Eip'ihu (royalty and nobility)  
**Eyu-** . . . Eyukhu (learned scholars, police and soldiers)  
**K'u-** . . . K'uot'hu (healers)  
**T'u-** . . . T'up'hu (rural trades)  
**Hu-** . . . Huhat'hu (urban trades)  
**Ae-** . . . Aekhahu (civil servants, politicians)  
**Na-**. . . Naihu (indentured servants)  
**Uo-** . . . Uohu (the "unclean" trades)

Ip'ihu usually use the prefix **Ip'-** as part of their names.

The birth order prefixes go as follows (classic readings in square brackets):

**Yesu** (first daughter), **Chusu** (first son)  
**Yech'a** (second daughter _Ye'chap'_), **Chuch'a** (second son _Chuch'ap'_)  
**Yeho** (third daughter _Yehoch'_), **Chuho** (third son _Chuhoch'_)  
**Yecho** (fourth daughter _Yechoch'_), **Chucho** (fourth son _Chuchoch'_)  
**Yech'u** (fifth daughter _Yech'uh_), **Chuch'u** (fifth son _Chuch'uh_)  
**Yeyeh** (sixth daughter), **Chuyeh** (sixth son)  
**Yeip'** (seventh daughter _Yeip'e_), **Chuip'** (seventh son _Chuip'e_)  
**Yeye** (eighth daughter _Yeyech'_), **Chuye** (eighth son _Chuyech'_)  
**Yeu** (ninth daughter _Yeuse_), **Chuu** (ninth son _Chuuse_)  
**Yeyep'** (tenth daughter), **Chuyep'** (tenth son)

4) Ye old list of terms and translations, appearing in the order they were first introduced:

**Noukiyek** . . . Noukiios' capital. Over the years, it has been called **Aip'yohek**, **Suchhek** and **Suchkyuk**. During the Urusian Occupation, the city was renamed **Yekhek**, which simply meant "capital city."

**Ch'uokyuk** . . . Noukiios' home star, a Class K1V sun (Sol is rated as a Class G2V).

**-ak** . . . Name suffix for a royal palace.

**luthier** . . . Proper term for a violinmaker.

**uyuat'** . . . twelve-string zither.

**Kap'p'ak** . . . Largest of the Nachna Islands.

**Ryekkyuk** . . . Largest city on Noukiios' northern continent, third largest on the planet after Noukiyek and K'ahuch. The birthplace of modern Noukiite culture; Ryekkyuk has the same spiritual resonance to Noukiites as Mecca has to Muslims. On Noukiios, to speak with a Ryekkyuk accent (in the local dialect, the name is pronounced **Ryoggyuk**) is seen as the sign of a very sophisticated person.

**Kahuch** . . . Island near Kap'p'ak.

**Yekk'ap'** . . . Literally "fire of the Dragon," but calling it the Dragon's Breath wouldn't be too far off.

**-yu** . . . Term of endearment, the Noukiite version of "-chan." This is used with names ending in a vowel; for consonant-ending names, Noukiites use the term **-u** (i.e. P'yeknu-yu, Niap'yeng-u).

**-cha** . . . Common Yehisrite and Vosian term of endearment.

**Yekna** . . . The old capital of one of Noukiios' ancient "three kingdoms," Hichp'u. Located in the southeast part of the southern continent. Yekna ranks second behind Ryekkyuk when it comes to spiritual importance to Noukiites; it was here that Inuch'ech based himself as he began to codify the modern faith.

**Onifu** . . . Oni-Fukunokami hybrid. A rare type of cross-race child in the local cluster, but appearing more frequently as trade between Uru and Fukunokami increases.

**Azhis'f** . . . Vosian-Yehisrite hybrid. The most common type of cross-race child in the local cluster; the first Azhis'f began to appear 1500 years ago. The word itself is Yehisrite in origin.

**Kyesak** . . . Ancient name for a ward in modern Noukiyek City. In the pre-Urusian Occupation name tradition, a person was identified by family name (the second name in Nukyek's case, T'ich) and clan name (the first part, after the caste identifier prefix), which was normally a geographic name.

**pe'cha** . . . Vosian psionic version of a blood brother bonding, which normally signifies very close friends. Nassur had such a bond with Benten (until he recognised her), Lum and Miyake Shinobu.

**Centre Test** . . . More formally, the **National Centre Test for University Admissions** (_Daigaku Nyushi Centre Shiken_), the first step university applicants need to take to pass into post-secondary education. Many universities also run a separate admissions test, but all students in Japan must pass the Centre Test first to gain admission to university. The current test format came into effect in 1990, replacing the **Common First-Stage Examination** (_Kyootsuu Daiichiji Gakuryoku Shiken_), which was implemented in 1979. The Common Examination would be what Ataru and Lum would have had to pass to get into teacher's college.

**nukhak** . . . Village guardian. Totem poles placed at the main entrance of any substantial Noukiite settlement as a way of warding off evil spirits from beyond the village walls.

**Kuchch'ek** . . . Major centre of education on the southern continent.

**Resuk** . . . Industrial city on the eastern coast on the southern continent, located northeast of Yekna.

**Cha** . . . Elder sister. Unlike the Japanese use of the term "onee-chan," the Noukiite term is only used for either blood or adopted relatives. "Younger sister" is translated as **Chai**.

**Taktek** . . . Province on the mid-west side of the southern continent.

**Ch'uonech** . . . Capital city of Taktek.

**Hakaech** . . . City in the northwest part of the southern continent, south of Noukiyek. The castle of the Masters of Noukiios was located near this city.

**Hechye Tat'** . . . Maiden's Dance. A very erotic dance usually done by a prostitute for a potential lover.

**Ait'uch Nehech** . . . Noukiios' first worldwide kingdom, existing from its foundation to 403. The latter dynasty that existed between 3162-4813 was named in honour of this ancient dynasty.

**lim'l** . . . Yehisrite battle-axe, standard edged weapon of a member of the Imperial Corps of Executioners. It incorporates a hook-shaped blade that actually does the beheading when used properly.

**seucheuchet'** . . . Eunuch's sword.

**Aeyek-hup'uk** . . . Righteous Love. All eunuch's swords are considered female, so it is seen as gramatically proper to refer to one of them as "her."

**hich'ek** . . . Page. Traditional title for a personal or executive assistant to one of the higher castes on Noukiios. Marina could be seen as Nukyek's hich'ek as well as being her friend.

**Euk Hichheksuch Seuchhoukhek** . . . King of the World of Holy Reincarnation. The Noukiite title pertaining to Moroboshi Ataru's job as Daite'cha of Sagussa. It's normally shortened as **Euk Hisehek**.

**Joodoshuu** . . . The Japanese title for the Pure Land (or Amidist) sect of Buddhism (Note: I'm guessing this is Megane's and before him, Cherry's specific sect).

**marei'cha** . . . Literally, "the one with whom you have a child." Commonly called "bond-mating." The Sagussan psionic equivalent to a marriage bond on Earth and many other planets.

**nep'ch'uop'e-o k'ahenich-kach kyungheng** . . . Literally, "never broken promise," though it is normally translated as "the promise never to be broken." The oath of life-bonding on Noukiites, which is normally used by partners willing to start a family. It could also be applied to lifelong friends.

**Seueukhek** . . . Ninth of the ten planets of Noukiios' solar system (Noukiios is the third world), commonly known in the rest of the galaxy as **Suagsei**. A Class J gas giant about the size of Jupiter.

**Nichsuo** . . . Seaport/spaceport in the southern continent, west of K'ahuch.

**Chuch'** . . . South. North is **k'ang**, west is **he** and east is **ch'ek**.

**-hu** . . . Name suffix for a temple.

**Yekhek** . . . Province on the southeastern and south-central side of the southern continent. Yekna, Resuk, Kuchch'ek, K'ahuch, Nichsuo and Kap'huch are all located in this province.

**-huch** . . . Name suffix for a mountain.

**Kyekip'** . . . Pre-Occupation name for Resuk.

**K'ep'yek** . . . City in Taktek.

**Hichaina** . . . City at the northwestern corner of the north continent. In Noukiite history, this was where the first contact with the Zephyrites and the Vosians occurred.

**Echtech** . . . A ward in Noukiyek City.

**Hachtech** . . . City on the southern coast of the south continent, though not in Yekhek province; this is one of the major cities of the southern part of Nechp'u province (which occupies the southwest portion of the southern continent, with Yekhek to the east and Taktek to the north).

**Tookonokooen** . . . Planet located in the exact centre of the triangle formed by Vos, Yehisril and Ipraedos. A neutral world with a semi-tropical climate, its native inhabitants are dark-skinned Vosian-like people who have a culture similar to Haiti's African-descent population.

**Nakkuk-nekk'ek'a** . . . Central Intelligence Agency.

**hichheksuch-euch** . . . Literally, "crowns of Heaven." Popular euphemism for a Noukiite's head-ridges.

**Koori** . . . The legendary founder of the modern Neptunian/Tritonian royal dynasty, a relative of Oyuki's.

**etahena** . . . Red pepper wine.

5) Historical figures (Note on Noukiios year dates: Year 1 is equal to 3126 BCE on Earth):

**Muchach** . . . First worldwide king of Noukiios. The year he brought the warring states together under one rule is always signified as Year 1 of the modern Noukiite calendar. He was born 46 years before that time (shorthanded as 46 BM Before Muchach) and finally died in 34. Over time, he was elevated to demigod status and given the posthumous title **Ch'uoeuk** (literally "great king" but also meaning "king of kings").

**The Eukt'ach' Emperor** . . . Second-to-last ruler of the Nehech Dynasty, reigned from 4769 to 4802, when he was deposed at the instigation of the Urusians for his son, Hachnek. He died of "natural causes" in 4819. His birth name (using the modern style) was Ei-Yi Chuch'a-T'yekk'eng and his reigning name was **Enek**.

**The Kyaksai Emperor** . . . Nukyek's fourth son with her husband. The last ruler of the Nehech Dynasty, reigned from 4802 to 4813, when the Urusian Empire annexed Noukiios and he was deposed. He died of "natural causes" in 4822. His birth name was Ei-Yi Chucho-Teng and his reigning name was **Hachnek**.

**The Suhek Emperor** . . . Emperor of Noukiios during the time of the war with the Eo pirates. He reigned from 4565 to 4617. His birth name was Ei-Yi Chuch'a-Heeuch and his reigning name was **Hechne**.

**Ye-Hit' Yeho-Huit'ch'uk** . . . Considered one of the most wise women in Noukiite history. Her birth name was Ye-Hit' Yeho-Ihech; "Huit'ch'uk" was her pen-name. She lived from 4183 to 4275. She was Yap'eng's mother.

**Inuch'ech** . . . Acknowledged as being the founder of the modern Noukiite religion; he was the one who wrote the first version of the standard holy text, the Scriptures of Heaven. His birth name and many details of his life are unknown; he is known to have been a native of Yekna. He lived from 912 to 986.

**Meiyo** . . . A respected Noukiite philosopher who lived in the middle years of the Nehech Dynasty. His birth name was Ye-Yi Chuye-Seuk. He lived from 4205 to 4270.

**Yap'eng** . . . Son of Ye-Hit' Yeho-Huit'ch'uk and chief philosophical rival of Meiyo. His birth name was Ye-Yi Chuho-Yi. He lived from 4208 to 4277.

**Ip'yoch** . . . The writer of a collection of tales centred on Noukiios' "three kingdoms" period of history; he lived during the middle years of the Ep'ye Dynasty, from 3005 to 3092. His birth name is lost to history.

**Ch'uhuch** . . . A philosopher of the latter years of the Nehech Dynasty, who strove to adopt the ancient beliefs of Noukiios into an era where interaction with aliens was becoming commonplace. His birth name was K'u-Nek Chusu-Yungyek; he was a faith-healer. He lived from 4472 to 4553.

**The Great Takchyek Emperor** . . . The one seen second only to Muchach as the most reviered monarch in all of Noukiios' history; the title "the Great" is always applied to him. It was during his reign that technology began to allow Noukiites to travel into space and progress beyond the industrial age that marked the Ep'ye years. His birth name was Ei-Yi Chuho-Ch'u and his reigning name was **Honek**. He reigned from 3214 to 3259.

**The Muine Emperor of Ep'ye** . . . Founder of the third worldwide royal dynasty after Muchach's. As dynastic founder, his reign era is not given another name. His birth name was Eyu-Eok Chusu-Ech and he reigned from 2019 to 2072. The name "Muine" itself literally means "Great Beginning."

**The Muine Emperor of Nehech** . . . Founder of the fourth worldwide royal dynasty after Muchach's. Again, as with the previous ruler given the name "Muine," he was never given another specific reign era name. His birth name was Eyu-Yi Chuho-Hekyo and he reigned from 3162 to 3201. The Takchyek Emperor was his grandson.

**King Hekch'eng** . . . One of the kings of Hichp'u, who reigned from 1195 to 1237. The bell built in his honour Reiko speaks of was actually commissioned by his son and completed during the reign of his grandson.

6) For those who might not be familiar with all the minor characters who appeared in the TSY storyline, the _Hasei'cha_ crew first made their appearance in the main TSY stories _Spirit-War Tomobiki_ and _Mie's Story_. Hoth Sunda appeared in _Great Father Ataru Stage Ten: Revelations_. Yuu and Mio were introduced in the TSY Tales of the Daishi'cha side story _Truth and Consequences_. Izuminodokyuu and Yui appeared in _Newgrange_. And the "Mizuno-sensei" Shinobu speaks of is none other than Mizuno Ami, a.k.a. Sailor Mercury, whom Ataru and Lum first met in the TSY/SM crossover _Lonely They Who Guard..._

7) Invader's personal cruiser was the ship that appeared in the fifth movie, _The Final Chapter_. The _Kashin_ is the ship that appeared in the first television episode and the first movie, _Only You_.

8) The Special Committee of Alien Activities (S.C.A.A.) is the United Nations agency that administers all general contacts between Terrans and non-Terrans. You can probably guess who they're based on.

9) The planetary classification system used here is the same one introduced in the _Star Trek_ reference manual _Star Trek Star Charts_ (ISBN 0-7434-3770-5), written by Geoffrey Mandel. A general note on those classifications is available on Wikipedia under the title "Star Trek planet classifications."


	2. Starting Anew

Outside of Onishuto . . .

"Miss Maki?"

The slender girl dressed in the simple gold blouse and thigh-high skirt tensed on hearing her name, and then she turned to gaze on the grim-faced man standing behind her. "Yes?"

A bow of the head. "My apologies. The men have moved the last of your belongings from your bedroom into your ship. They're ready to deal with the remainder of the property."

The younger woman blinked a couple of times as she took in his words, and then she nodded. "Please?"

"Of course, Miss Maki."

With that, he bowed again to her, and then he shouted orders to the crew nearby. Many of them sprang into the cockpits of their lifting machines, they turning motors over so they could get on with the disposal. Like most houses of the rich and famous Onis on Uru, the Skelad mansion was shaped like a grounded UFO, sitting on legs to allow the keel to rise many feet above ground level. It was an old place, dating from the time of the Union Revolution in fact. The surfaces were worn down by years of weathering though it was still quite capable of remaining erect, serving as a family home for many years to come.

It wouldn't get the chance.

Four lifting machines, resembling mechanical versions of Terran goliath beetles with repulsor-lift mounts in lieu of legs, moved to the cardinal points on the mansion's flanks. Hollow _clangs!_ echoed through the early morning air as magnetic grapples took hold of the mass. Then, after a shouted command from the crew chief, the lifting machines began to rise. Squeals of torn metal billowed from the mounts as they were sheared from their concrete foundations buried all the way to the bedrock many metres below Maki's feet. Once the last part had been ripped clear, the mansion began a steady ascent into the sky, it beginning its final journey that would end in the superheated corona of Uru's bright primary star.

Under normal circumstances, Urusians as a whole tended to recycle as much as they could; in many ways, the resource recovery industry on this world was the most advanced in the local cluster, even better than the more ancient powers such as Zephyrus, Vos or Yehisril. Indeed, what was happening now would typically be seen to one extreme as a waste of a good amount of building materials; to the other extreme, the unnecessary destruction of a fine home which could be rebuilt into cheap apartments for a burgeoning population.

The woman born as Skelad Maki knew that.

With this action, she was delivering a message that had only been spoken ONCE in Urusian history.

It needed to be said again.

* * *

Watching Maki from nearby, the crew chief kept his face neutral. The news of what was happening here today wouldn't hit the gossip infonets for a while. The attention of most Urusians these last few days had been taken up by reports of the recent incident near the desert world of Konton. The effective _defection_ of well over a million Urusians from the colony worlds of Machibusu, Baiseki and Tamamono, they casting away their allegiances to the Urusian people to form a new Eo Kingdom, just as rebels to the Imperial Round had done centuries ago on Machibusu, thus leading to the first contact with Noukiios. How Aruka Insa, a famous conservative infonet personality who had been "crowned" as the first "empress" of the breakaway state, had spearheaded that defection. How they announced their actions by attacking and destroying the brand-new battlewagon _Koishii Moroboshi_. And how they tried to kill Moroboshi Reiko, the Noukiite-born daughter of Mrs. Lum and her husband, all in vengeance over the death of Insa's traitor son Popok.

And how, in the midst of that incident, two of the greatest heroes in the history of Reiko's native world -- two people who were, according to some of the more fantastic entries in the infonet he had seen over the last day or so, related by BLOOD to her -- had literally come back from the dead!

_Ironic_, the crew chief mused to himself as he glanced heavenward to the shrinking spot in the sky which had been the Skelad mansion. Aruka Popok had been the number two man to Maki's late sister Lara, he working with her in an attempt to destroy the Sagussans in some insane prequel to an Urusian Imperial restoration with Mrs. Lum herself as the new empress, every reform made over the last two centuries thrown out like old bathwater. According to news from the infonet, Popok had died the day before Shogai Dakejinzou killed Lara. As to what had killed Popok, no one had any idea; his mother had claimed the traitor's body after it had been shipped from Earth, it disappearing with her to Konton when she joined the Eo.

As for Lara's body . . .

The crew chief shuddered as the scene from the main room of the former Skelad mansion replayed in his mind. The mortal remains of EVERY member of Lara's family had been exhumed from the family crypt in the mountains north of Uru's capital, transported here and left in their caskets and urns helter-skelter among the tapestries, statues, memorabilia and other bric-and-brac collected by the many generations of Skelads since the Union Revolution. The crew chief knew the crypt itself would be destroyed, the hole in the ground it sat in filled, permanently obliterating all traces of its existence from the outside world.

And as for the House Bible, the genealogy maintained by every family since the Revolution . . .

It all would soon become fuel to Oniboshi's eternal fires.

Shaking his head, he walked away, heading to his small work flitter so he could compose his report for the company's records. While he could understand Maki's feelings -- to learn that your own sister, whom you loved very much, had been proven to be guilty of treason and sedition, not only against your own people, but your allies and other powers! -- to react in the way Maki herself was doing now was going WAY too far. But then again, who was he to argue? After Skelad Industries had been taken over by the consortium owned by Kuk Numon, Maki had become a very rich woman. She was paying for this act of demolition, this emotional and spiritual cleansing of her past, out of her very own pocket money.

Perhaps there was justice there.

Everything Skelad Lara and Skelad Slan had strived to build, Skelad Maki was about to spend away.

He paused as he remembered another change about to come over the young woman.

Right.

It was Pyem Maki, now . . .

**

* * *

**

Urusei Yatsura - The Ishinomaki Years: _Starting Anew_

by Fred Herriot

Second of a series of stories based on _Urusei Yatsura_, created by Takahashi Rumiko

Based on the universe of _Urusei Yatsura - The Senior Year_, created by Mike Smith and Fred Herriot

* * *

"'Morning."

"Heaven's blessings on you, Lady Marina."

Muzuka Marina blinked on hearing that formal greeting, and then she sighed as she reached up to rub her forehead. "Geez, Nia! Willya quit being so damned formal around me?! It's giving me the hives!"

Staring at the Onifu-Azhis'f hybrid, K'e-Nuk Yeho-Niap'yeng tried not to grin before she turned back to the morning copy of the _Yomiuri Shimbun_ she was reading. The Moroboshi home in Tomobiki was quiet this time of the day; Ataru and Lum were off to work and Amora was off to school. Marina had just come up from the recreation room, where futons had been laid out for the sudden influx of guests. Reiko and Mina themselves were currently in Oshika, the former helping the latter get settled into the Moroboshi home there so she could have a place to relax and rest while she was attending the Ishinomaki Young Women's Academy. Willow, Yuri and Hiromi were with them, they also getting ready for their first classes at the Academy. Reiko and Mina would return to Tomobiki later that day so they could spend some final days with Reiko's relatives before the Academy's new semester began on the first of May. Hanak'at' and K'yechsungi were watching over Heaven's Gate Temple while Niap'yeng would remain close to Marina -- and by extension, to Reiko and her lover -- until a decision concerning the hybrid girl would be made in Noukiyek City.

It seemed a straightforward thing at first glance. Marina had been the only companion to the T'yekhek Empress since the former had flung herself into the Yekk'ap' eighteen years before. Within that timeless place beyond the normal bounds of Reality, relations between the hybrid and the Noukiite noblewoman born during the last century of Nehech had evolved from open hostility to a pe'cha bond, the act done by Vosians to mark their closest, dearest friends. That Marina herself was the current welder of the Empress' eunuch's blade, Aeyek-hup'uk -- a gift given to the latter by an admiring swordsmith when she married the Eukt'ach' Emperor in 4765 -- was a mark of how much Her Majesty cared for and trusted her.

Now, if only the OTHER parts of Marina's life didn't come roaring out of the past to harass her . . .

Niap'yeng shook her head as Marina walked into the backyard so she could perform her morning drill with Aeyek before she would take a shower and have breakfast. When Lum met the hybrid, heard her Fukunokami name, she had become as stiff as a board whenever she found herself in Marina's presence. It didn't take long for Marina to realise why; it only required her to walk into Ataru's study to see the small model of the I.S.S. _Renegade_ for her to clue in as to under who's tutelage Lum had once trained when she was a child. And it only took one glance at Miyake Shinobu's adopted daughter Junba to realise an avenue towards addressing the hideous injustice done on her all those years ago was literally within her grasp.

Would she take it . . .?

Niap'yeng chuckled. No, there was nothing to fear. Marina was rightfully angry with many people who had done her wrong throughout her life, but she was not the bloodthirsty barbarian trash newsnet reports once made her as. News of her escape from the Yekk'ap' had been conveniently buried in the sidebars when word of the discovery of the T'yekhek Empress and Admiral Ye-Yi Chusu-Hachhich, both alive and well, had broken out. It wouldn't be long before people Marina had fought before her time in the Yekk'ap' learned the truth. Fortunately, her abusive father, Muzuka Haras, would not come back to wrong Marina anew; he had been sent to face the Ch'uoeuk's judgement by Marina herself two years before she encountered the Yekk'ap'. Her clearly insane mother Wonsuna was, according to the latest reports, alive, living in a country home in Tazukos, one of the most populous duchies in the Yehisrite principality of Dysos. It would take some time for news to reach out there. By that time, hopefully, Marina would be safe on Noukiios, within the walls of the Yekk'eng Palace and under the direct tutelage of the Venerable Ye-Etech Chuch'a-Ik'a, the legendary blind warrior Neuch'ahi himself. There was one other known relative Marina had mentioned, a maternal half-brother named Gilpirko, the only child of Wonsuna's first marriage (which had also -- Surprise! Surprise! -- ended with her becoming a widow). He had, in some hope of winning back his mother's favour, attacked Marina's first lover on Oyatsui sometime after Haras' death, blinding and crippling the poor woman for life.

And then Nassur had been called into it . . .

_A pity he will remain missing for some time_, Niap'yeng mused to herself as she turned back to her paper. From what she had heard of the Vosian -- and remembered of him from the time the Lost Stars had been rescued from the Masters' castle near Hakaech -- he was no idiot by any stretch of the imagination. And being Vosian, he would know of the psychological complications that might arise from a recognition bond shattered by the sudden death of one of the partners. What had made him agree to Wonsuna's demands to track Marina down, hound her like a criminal, then try to drag her back to Dysos to face her mother's vengeance? Neither Lum nor Shinobu, even with them being Nassur's pe'cha, could answer that; whatever strange phenomena had allowed the Vosian's spirit to contact his former student during the matter with Skelad Lara had faded, leaving many a question to remain unanswered for the next six years at least.

"Hopefully, the Congress will move to welcome her home with open arms," she muttered.

* * *

Outside, Marina twirled Aeyek-hup'uk around as she worked on a new sword kata she had developed during her time in the Dragon's Breath. The eunuch's blade, which had finally, so long after it had been forged, tasted blood some days before when her current mistress had struck off the hand of Aruka Insa, seemed to sing as she whizzed through the air. Almost in anticipation of when it would taste blood again.

It would be soon, the hybrid knew.

In the Yekk'ap', she was effectively dead to the whole universe. Safe from any pursuit.

Now she was in the real universe again, out in the open. And thus, a target.

What had happened to poor Caitlyn Bryan at Gilpirko's hands years ago proved that.

Marina didn't want that to happen to anyone else close to her.

ESPECIALLY one Ei-T'ich Yesu-Nukyek.

The hybrid shuddered as the image of the Noukiite empress flashed through her mind, that then imposed with that of Caitlyn's bleeding face the day Marina had discovered when her half-brother had done to the poor Terran expat. The very idea of someone as beautiful, pure and innocent as Nukyek facing someone as deranged as Gilpirko sent a storm of daggers into Marina's heart. It didn't take much of a stretch of imagination for the hybrid to consider what could happen should news of her return to "life" get to Tazukos. Wonsuna, who had fled to Yehisril after Marina had slit Haras' throat in their family home in Bensaikyou, had been willing to send Gilpirko to Oyatsui to destroy Marina by attacking Caitlyn. Noukiios wasn't much farther away from Yehisril than Oyatsui . . . and there wasn't any guarantee that Marina could depend on anyone in the Dominion to keep an eye out for people after her should she eventually relocate to the Yekk'eng Palace.

_You haven't recognised her, you idiot . . .!_ one part of her scolded. _She's not Caitlyn._

_Don't matter!_ the other side warned. _We're pe'cha with her. To Gilpirko, it's the same thing in the long term. Anything that hurts me makes him happy; he thinks it'll earn more brownie points with Mom!_

_She's not our mother anymore._

_She's sick. She's probably got Bornai lingering over her from the death of Gilpirko's dad._

_So? You defended her from the monster she married and how did she thank us? Banish us from the family, sent her son after us to rape and maim our lover, and THEN she hired Nassur to chase us down like we were a thief! We should do as Nukyek-cha always suggested we do when we escaped the Dragon's Breath: hunt HER down and kill her once and for all. With her before the Three-Faced One, we'll be safe at last._

_THAT'S MOM YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT!_

A snort. _To quote Rei's dad: 'Some mother.'_

Marina stopped, and then she lowered her sword as she gazed heavenward, her eyes tearing.

* * *

"Marina-vayae . . . "

Uttering that simple phrase, the blonde, blue-eyed Canadian appearing to be in her late teens felt her cheeks colour before she turned back to monitor the stew she was cooking. A glance outside the hut's window showed a misty day on New Avalon, rain coming in from the mountains north of Habitation Four. It was good; the plants in her garden needed water so they could bloom. Once they did and started to produce their fruit and vegetables, she could then get them to the habitation market so she could earn some extra money. While everyone on this planet was given a government stipend to support themselves -- it was generated from a combination of revenue generated from precious mineral mining and goods and services taxes imposed on both imported and exported goods -- it was nice to have some more cash whenever she needed it.

And if what she had felt in her bones over the last week was telling her the truth, she would need it.

Her beloved was finally back.

Gone for nineteen years, but alive and whole.

The doorbell pealed. "Coming!" she called out as she turned the heat down on her stew, and then she walked to the front door, opening it to see a young bioroid -- no doubt of the generation created aboard the factory in the immediate wake of the Liberation from the Niphentaxians -- standing there. "Yes?"

"Miss Caitlyn Bryan?"

"Yes?"

"Sorry to bother you, ma'am," the girl apologized with a respectful bow, and then she handed over a datapadd. "Transmitted to us from Sagussa a tenth-day ago. The Interior Department dispatched me over to deliver it to you personally, ma'am. It concerns your marei'cha, Miss Marina Muzuka."

Caitlyn laughed. "We aren't bonded yet, but I appreciate the sentiments," she noted as she took the padd in hand, and then she flicked it on to read the information there. A second later, she nodded. "So she entered some sort of weird time-space nexus to meet the Empress T'ich, huh . . .?"

"T'yekhek, ma'am."

Caitlyn looked at her. "Excuse me?"

"Her Majesty's name when not addressing her directly. It's 'T'yekhek.'" A blush. "I made that mistake, too; I heard all the stories about her. But I was corrected by the Interior Director."

"Ah! Thank you for telling me that," Caitlyn acknowledged that with a nod, and then she turned back to the padd, adding in a mutter, "A lot more formal than what we use to address Queen Elizabeth . . . "

"Will you see her again?"

"Oh, that DEFINITELY will happen!" the Canadian assured her with a wink. "Thank you for the padd." She paused as she considered something, and then she asked, "Are you hungry? I've got stew . . . "

The younger girl blinked, and then she blushed. "It's alright, ma'am . . . "

A creaking noise echoed from her abdomen. The girl's cheeks reddened even more as Caitlyn broke out in laughter, and then she beckoned her inside. "Relax at the table; it's almost done."

"Th-thanks . . . "

Taking a chair, the younger girl sat down as Caitlyn poured her a flute of juice, and then she turned back to finish preparing the stew. Nodding appreciatively to her host, she took a deep sip of the fruit drink -- it was a mix of native wild berry with Earth strawberry, she realised -- before her eyes fell over the older woman's well-exercised form, it clad in a pair of tight blue jeans and a white halter-top, both created locally from designs imported from Earth. Feeling her cheeks start to redden as she found herself imagining what Caitlyn would look like in the nude, the girl quickly fought to re-forge her mental shields lest her host sense her growing desire and consider it offensive. While Avalonians, like Sagussans, were socially promiscuous and didn't consider it wrong to engage in intimacy with those beyond one's chosen bond-mates, there were always exceptions to the rule. Caitlyn Allison Bryan was simply one of them.

Which was understandable, after all. Like five hundred other Terrans -- Ryooki Koosei being one of them -- Caitlyn had been abducted from Earth sometime in 1971 by agents of the Ipraedies Information Service as a prequel for the then-Empire's planned invasion of that world. Subjected to all sorts of torture, she eventually escaped with the help of a friendly Dowe'on member of the Service, she making her way to the Fukunokami colony world of Oyatsui. There, she settled at an abused women's shelter, helping out with the residents as a volunteer worker. Around the Earth year 1976, she met a hybrid girl named Muzuka Marina, who had been forced to flee to Oyatsui from Fukunokami after she had murdered her father in defence of her mother after she had caught him in a drunken rage, beating his wife senseless.

It had literally been love at first sight.

The relationship lasted only a year, though. One night, Caitlyn was attacked, beaten and raped by a man named Gilpirko -- who later was revealed to be Marina's half-brother! Horrified by what had been done to someone she loved deeply, Marina fled Oyatsui. The famed independent hunter Nassur was hired by Marina's mother Wonsuna to track her down. He did catch her on Gomiana, he then moving her back to Home Base before she would be sent on to Dysos. Along the way, Marina broke free of her confinement and ejected out of _Renegade_ via one of her escape pods. She was never seen again.

Caitlyn had been destroyed by the incident. Her co-workers had gladly kept her at the shelter, caring for the now-blinded, crippled woman; Gilpirko had carved out her eyes and severed her spinal column at her waist when he was tearing her apart with his knife. There she had remained until a famine struck Oyatsui years after the Battle of Uru. Help came in the form of the Sagussan destroyer R.S.S. _Shinowatari'cha_, commanded by the legendary Makoto Seikou. As relief supplies were shipped in from across the local cluster, Makoto's bond-mate's sister Hotaru discovered Caitlyn at the shelter. While she had been forbidden by her superiors to subject the Terran to the regeneration matrix of Sagurei, Hotaru did contact a friend of hers working for the Elder Mother Gloriana aboard the factory. Caitlyn had a replacement body grown for her -- given Sagussa's history with the concept, Avalonians didn't like using the word "clone" when describing that process -- and, after settling affairs with her friends, moved to New Avalon to begin her life anew.

And now . . .

"Here you go."

The younger woman gasped as a plate of stew was placed before her, and then she stared at Caitlyn for a moment before she nodded her thanks. "Sorry. My mind was running off somewhere . . . "

The Canadian gave her a knowing look. "No doubt, you were thinking something perverted."

The girl froze. "I-I w-wasn't . . .!"

Caitlyn's finger touched one of her nostrils, coming away red with blood. "Come again?"

The younger girl had the courtesy to look sheepish.

* * *

"So Marina-yu's heart-mate still lives?"

"On New Avalon, Your Majesty."

Seated in the middle of the Achnek Hall, the meeting room once used by her late husband to deal with affairs of state, the Muine T'yekhek Empress of Noukiios -- as people were presently proclaiming her as on the streets despite the lack of official announcements from the government -- nodded. "Avalonians? Those are bioroids, beings no different from my blood-child P'yeknu, who were created by the predecessors to the Maidens of the World of Holy Reincarnation, then placed on the twelfth planet of the Phentax system. They were liberated from the Niphentaxians by P'yeknu's adopted parents and relocated some years ago. Correct?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," Prime Minister Eyu-It' Chusu-Nekrip' said with a respectful bow. "You know, from the very words and feelings of the Lady Marina herself, what happened to the Lady K'eit'rin . . . " -- even with his experience dealing with outworlders, he found some of the names too bizarre to pronounce -- "When the Lady Marina's half-brother attacked and brutalized her. She remained on Oyatsui after the Lady Marina joined Your Majesty in the Yekk'ap', where she was found by one of the Maidens during the famine that struck that planet some years ago. She made arrangements with a friend working on the Avalonians' factory satellite to create a body for the Lady K'eit'rin's spirit to inhabit. She later relocated to their new home world, which lies in neutral territory bordering the outspin frontier of the Seifukusu Dominion."

A hum. "I see. And what news of Gilpirko and his insane mother?"

"We are still investigating, Your Majesty. The Yehisrites, as you know, frown on any form of chattel slavery, which we unfortunately began to practice in earnest with the Naihu after the Occupation ended. Ever since Crown Princess Shinobu became the blood regent of Kyotos, relations between the Dominion and the Royal Kingdoms have deteriorated significantly." Nekrip' paused as he considered what else to say, and then he proposed, "We could prevail upon the Maidens, of course, to ask about them on our behalf."

"Please do so at your earliest opportunity, Prime Minister," the Empress bade him. "I do not wish to prevail on you to abandon your official duties to the people, but your assistance would be appreciated."

"It will be as you request, Your Majesty. May I have your leave?"

"You may go."

With a deep bow, Nekrip' quickly exited from Achnek Hall to return to his office on the island of Kyeai, located in the Such River that flowed through the centre of Noukiyek towards the Central Sea, where the Dominion Assembly building and most of the government ministry headquarters were located. Once more alone with her thoughts, the woman baptized three centuries ago as (to use the modern naming convention) Ei-T'ich Yesu-Nukyek took a deep breath as a hand came up to rub the bony ridge over the bridge of her nose.

While it had been quite comfortable to fall back to the forms she once used when she came back to the Yekk'eng Palace, it felt in some ways wrong to her, especially in the wake of her stay in the Yekk'ap'. And especially after she had met and befriended Muzuka Marina. Shaking her head, she stood up, walking out of the hall so she could return to her quarters in the Sakk'eng House, located behind Achnek Hall, so she could relax in her library and continue the pressing work of catching up with what had happened to her people since the Venerable Neuch'ahi had whisked her from the Palace for the safety of the Yekk'ap'.

Her legal status was still somewhat up in the air. Of course, she had been automatically recognised as a citizen of Noukiios, with the rights and responsibilities of the same given her place in the Ten Orders. However, in the wake of the Occupation and the foundation of the Dominion, there had been little if nothing left of the Eip'ihu as a whole thanks to the Urusian Imperials. While their ranks had been steadily growing over the years, they were demographically still the smallest of the Ten Orders. With that, they couldn't exert as much influence through the process called "democracy" -- inherited ultimately from states on Earth called "Britain," "America" and "France" thanks to an Urusian named Aruka Syl -- to press for the necessary constitutional changes in the Dominion's laws to revert the planet once more to a dynastic monarchy.

And while there supposedly was a vast groundswell of popular desire for her to restore the throne and establish a new dynasty, as to what form of dynasty she would establish was a total mystery. And if she did establish such a dynasty, what would happen to the current President, who had seemed to be a decent man when she had first met him some days before? Who would have what political power, where would be the necessary checks and balances on that power, and how would the people ultimately have a say in the matter? The Council of Sages, the group of retired government officials and high clerics who served as the ultimate spiritual advisors to the government and the people, were hotly debating the matter. And, like it had been back in the final years of Nehech, when THAT body was in debate, one would -- as the old saying went -- have to live all TEN of one's mortal lives and have ascended to Heaven before hearing their decision.

Nukyek stopped to gaze into the clear sky over Noukiyek City. _Marina, I need you . . . _

With that, she shook her head as she ducked through the doors of the Sakk'eng House.

* * *

"So it's been done?"

"It happened early this morning."

Silence fell over the dark room somewhere in Onishuto. "There may be an opportunity here."

The others in the room gazed on the person who proposed that. "What sort of opportunity?" one asked. "With what? Lara squandered a lot of support we could have generated with the electorate with her plan to attack and destroy the Sagussans. And what little was left was gutted by Insa when she decided her stupid son's death mattered more than restoring things to the way they should be." By this, the man was referring to the time before the Imperial Counter-Revolution. "Atop that, the colonial militia have moved to Konton _en masse_ to establish their 'kingdom.' And with T'ich and Yi back, the bone-heads . . . " -- that was the common insult often applied to Noukiites by outworlders -- "Aren't going to bend an iota when it comes to the worlds they stole from us after the Revolution. Not with two of their greatest heroes literally coming back from the dead like they did! And now with this whole idea their Council of Sages just dreamt up to end slavery all just to make room for the bloody Ip'ihu in their Ten Orders . . . "

"That's NOT going to happen!" another man snarled.

"We'll deal with that later," the man who had spoken of opportunity cut in to prevent a shouting match from erupting over a possible "Ip'ihu Inclusion" to coincide with the "Naihu Emancipation" recently announced by the Noukiite government in the wake of the Skelad Scandal and the opening of formal diplomatic relations between that planet and Earth. "We need to mend fences with the Terrans as soon as possible. What Maki just did will make things a lot easier for us if it's played right in the Congress."

Eyes locked on him. "How so?" a woman asked.

"Her planned name-change," he replied. "We've all read the story about Princess Pyem, haven't we? How she went to the Emperor after she found out what her sons had been doing to the other Great Houses, then got him to literally wipe their names and faces from history, she becoming a wandering pilgrim for the rest of her days in repentance. We all know that story. It's a story many aliens we've dealt with have always respected about us, even the Noukiites. If we use what Maki is trying to do to our advantage, we'll score big-time with the Terrans, repair relations between our planets so quick, it'll be as if Lara never existed."

"In a way, she never HAS existed," another man stated with a snort.

Rueful chuckles echoed through the room. "How could we do that?" another woman asked.

"Have Maki take Lara's place in Tokyo."

Silence.

"What?!" the man who had vowed the Ip'ihu would never escape justice snapped. "Have HER become our ambassador to Earth?! Okay, she graduated from Oniboshi Galactic University with degrees in political science, but that doesn't give her the right stuff to be an ambassador . . .!"

"So what?" the leader of this conversation -- for that was what he had now become by dropping the idea of making Pyem Maki (nee Skelad Maki) the next Ambassador of the Union of Uru to the United Nations of Earth to his companions -- wondered. "Lara wasn't well qualified to do that, either. All she really had were good looks, the skills to work a crowd and a heart as cold as deepest space. And she DID have the brains to cook up that scheme to wipe out the Sagussans, plus the financial backing to try to actually see it through. Given what Maki's trying to do right now, it proves she's got brains, too. PLUS the willpower and desire to do something about it. Let's channel it in the right direction. And that leads to Tokyo."

"Will the rest of Congress agree to this?" a woman asked.

"We make them agree to this."

Knowing looks were exchanged between the others. While none of them were elected officials in either of the houses of the Urusian Congress, they still had much in the way of true power in the Union's government. They were either long-time civil servants who had stayed in their posts during the upheavals of the Imperial Counter-Revolution or industrial leaders -- people no different than the late Skelad Slan, in fact -- whose wealth bought them influence where votes and public adoration could not. Between them all, they effectively controlled the nominally conservative elements in Congress, numbering about one-third of the total body. And with the actions of both Skelad Lara and Aruka Insa, those nominal "representatives of the people" would be soon looking to THEM for some guidance when the new session of Congress was called.

"What do we do about the Noukiites?" another man challenged.

"Don't worry about them for now," the leader flatly stated. "They're going to be spending the next while turning themselves inside out to find some way to give T'ich a place in their society again. They won't be so worried about us now that they, thanks to Fate, 'got one over us' -- TWO over us, counting Yi as well -- when they got free of the Dragon's Fire. That debate's going to consume their society for months, maybe even a year. By that time, we'll have made some inroads with the 'Eo,' turning their anger back to where it should be focused: destroying the Ip'ihu. And with that, get our planets back."

"We'll have to break that bitch!" another woman hissed. "She fought us all the way to the end when we were trying to bring her stupid husband to heel. We never DID break her. This time, we can't let her get away with anything! Especially with what she said to Invader when she got free!"

Nods across the room. "We'll deal with her along the way," the leader concluded. "It can be done. Everyone has his or her breaking point. The mistake last time with T'ich was that her breaking point wasn't really identified before the idiots trying to do away with her elected to be more direct -- and stupid -- about it. If we did the same thing, we'd be at war with the Noukiites in a flash -- and this time, they'll have the Sagussans and a dozen other races backing them up along the way. Do we want that?"

A chorus of shudders and rapid shakings of people's heads answered him.

* * *

"Oh, dear . . . "

"That doesn't sound good, Numon."

"No, Negau, it doesn't," Kuk Numon mused as she tapped controls to sever the monitor links she had established over the years in the known private meeting places the more questionable elements of Urusian high society used to conspire. Being touch-telepathic, trained in stealth mind-probing techniques and having the backing of the most technologically advanced society in this half of the galaxy made her job a lot easier. But it didn't make it any bit enjoyable, especially when she was forced to deal with THESE people.

"You have any idea how they could try to attack Empress T'ich?" Redet Negau (nee Renning Negau) asked as she wrapped her arms around her lover's neck, she tenderly kissing the tip of one of Numon's ears.

"It'll most likely be aimed at Muzuka Marina," Numon concluded; Eluza sent her a full report on the incident concerning the Yekk'ap' a day after the prototype transwarp solar-sail ship _Odyssey_ -- built at a secret shipyard on the new colony planet of Hukusei by the first Elder Mother of Sagussa, Yuu, and her friends -- arrived at Noukiios bearing her famed passengers. "We have to find some way to keep her safe until such time as we do away with this lot before they end up instigating a war with the wrong people."

The commander of the Urusian Defence Intelligence Agency took that statement in, and then she sighed. "To believe that scientists in the last years of Nehech actually developed transwarp technology, then wiped out all signs of their work and killed themselves before the Imperials were any the wiser."

"Count yourself lucky that knowledge never fell into the hands of the Imperial Round," Numon advised her. "If they broke through the Barrier and tried to invest Sagussa, it could have led to the destruction of Uru. Even if they were just finely tuned logic machines at the time, the Daishi'cha would have gladly put a stop to them by whatever means possible, including all-out genocide. And who knows WHAT Henry might have done if something like that happened. He was determined to see the Grand Design through no matter what. If someone tried to butt in the way, especially the fools in charge of this planet at that time, a genesis bomb or use of the Gatherer's anti-proton cannons would have dealt with the matter quite thoroughly."

Negau shuddered. In the few times she had met with Sagussans -- Numon excepted, of course -- she had found them to be very optimistic, friendly to a fault, tolerant to an extraordinary level, relatively lacking in the way of deep social prejudices, accepting of many new ideas, and quite willing to help out those in need when it was called for and their Non-Interference Directive didn't get in the way. With that, it was QUITE easy to forget that each and every one of them -- from the first, Yoakenikkou, to the last, Tenba -- had been meticulously programmed (there was no better word for it) to rebuild and restore a planet shattered by a five-century civil war to life again. The very core of each of their souls had been moulted towards that end; even Numon frequently demonstrated that unyielding determination to succeed against nigh impossible odds that was the cornerstone of a Daishi'cha's soul. And one just had to visit the planet to experience the results of that drive. Before the Grand Design began in earnest twelve years ago, Sagussa was effectively a Class H desert world just like Konton. That had been miraculously changed, far for the better.

To actually destroy that . . .?

It would be a crime beyond all crimes.

Negau leaned over to kiss Numon's earlobe, her arms tightening against her lover's breasts as she gently probed into her mind to see what the Cha'than-turned-Oni/Sagussan had in mind now. Images began to flash in her mind. Gomiana, she realised, recognising the darkened streets of the lower town of that planet's capital city. Fleeting images of meetings between Numon -- then just known as Irunmei, the only Daishi'cha who had REBELLED against the Grand Design of the Fifth Republic! -- and another, a young girl with hungry eyes, the ears of a Seishin-Urusian . . . and the spinal ridges of a Noukiite . . .?!

Who . . .?

Before she could ask Numon a question, the crimson-haired woman turned around to kiss her on the lips. _Don't ask_, she telepathically instructed her before she rose, moving to gently draw Negau to her bedroom.

At this time, their love needed a more physical means of expression.

* * *

Hours after the burning disk of Oniboshi had sunk past the rolling peaks of the mountains bordering the Terrible Swamps, a transporter beam silently flared into life in a dark alley in one of the more affluent sections of Uru's capital. It faded, revealing a woman dressed from head to toe in non-reflective black, she also having a web belt containing many tools secured in pouches strapped around her waist, plus special goggles which allowed her to see in almost any environment. With that, she took the opportunity to scan around her. Seeing nothing that could indicate someone had spotted her, she grinned under her mask before she cautiously made her way towards the back door of the townhouse Aruka Insa called home. Glancing around again to see if anyone was watching her, the intruder's grin turned into a delighted smirk as she slipped a lock-breaker out of her web belt to affix to the door, she keying the control to scan the security system that had been fitted in the building when the now-deceased conservative infonet broadcaster had moved in here shortly after she started making waves -- and a lot of hot air -- in the virtual world.

It had taken Koa Oetan by surprise when the call had come to her private apartment on Gomiana several days before from her "aunt" Irunmei, who had taken the orphaned Seishin-Noukiite hybrid into her care after her parents had been killed by Ip'ihu assassins. Oetan's father had been the son of a war leader of the Wolf People, someone who had not wanted to follow his family's path into the eternal war with the "dog people" and had gone so far as to actually MATE with such a person -- Oetan's mother (where she got her family name) was part of one of the more prominent of the Freedom Five-Hundred Clans -- to make his life his own. That had been something the Ip'ihu NEVER tolerated from any of their members. If it hadn't been for the woman with the strange ears and the cat-slit eyes having come along to snap the necks of the idiots who had murdered her mother and father, Oetan would have most likely followed them in facing the Ch'uoeuk at the Two Portals.

With that call had come a dare: Prove yourself to your father's people. ALL of them.

It had been a dare Oetan couldn't resist. Especially when it came from Irunmei.

The first target had been a no-brainer: Aruka Insa. The stupid woman had, in many of her broadcasts on the infonet over the last decade, bragged loudly about all the "trinkets" her ancestors brought back to Uru from Noukiios over the Occupation. The disdain the fool constantly showed to the Children of Muchach clearly indicated that anything produced from them was utterly worthless. Which made her the perfect target for a midnight visit by a well-trained thief. Insa HAD been a fool, after all. Throwing her freedom away to join a hopeless cause like a new Eo Kingdom all because her traitor son had been killed? Stupid!

The lock-breaker vibrated once, indicating the security system had been overcome. Grinning, Oetan opened the door and slipped inside, she taking the lock-breaker before closing it. Once inside, she slipped the device into her belt and took a look around with her scanner-goggles. No internal security devices like motion sensors, laser grids or the like. A snort burst from Oetan's lips as she began her examination. Stupid AND arrogant, too! Typical Imperial. None of them EVER conceived of the possibility that anyone would attack them in their own homes; they believed the "lesser peoples" -- a phrase originating with the Seifukusu -- would be too much in awe of their greatness to never consider doing otherwise. That critical social blindness had been easy for Insa's kinswoman Aruka Syl to exploit when she began the steps to launch the Union Revolution, that same weakness later exploited by Seq Yedris when the many imperfections of the Union junta eventually led up to the stupid farce of the Imperial Counter-Revolution.

A scan of the room around her revealed several tapestries dating from the early years of Ep'ye. All had been nicely preserved in stasis fields, Oetan quickly noted. No doubt, Insa didn't care about their cultural or historical value to the people they had been made for. These were spoils of conquest, nothing more or less. Too bad. With that, the thief began to tenderly lift them off the walls, ensuring the stasis fields remained in place before they could be transported to her starship (currently in cloaked orbit over Onishuto; Oetan never trusted either the dockyard workers or the security staff at any major spaceport with her mobile base) for transfer to an antiquities broker she dealt with in the alien quarter in K'ahuch. Once in his hands, the tapestries would be sent to the Cultural Properties Ministry in Noukiyek for further study and then display at a museum or restoration to the families of their original owners.

That process didn't take long; the stasis units were rugged and built to stand rough transit without allowing their cargo to be damaged. Once the room had been cleaned out, Oetan began a detailed examination of the other rooms. More tapestries from all the periods of Noukiios' history, statues forged of emerald (the holiest element in local lore) looking as if they came from the middle years of Ep'ye, even a family's hearth shrine -- complete with marble plates etched with the names of the hearth angels meant to protect one's home from evil spirits -- dating from the early years of Nehech . . .! As her mind began to calculate the value of what was in this place, Oetan tried not to drop to her knees in shock. All this in ONE house?! Damn! She had to start probing around all the other storehouses of looted Noukiite goods on Uru and her colonies. If she decided to retire after this job, she would be set for the rest of her life.

Thinking that, Oetan shook her head. Nah! Life was too interesting to watch it sitting on your ass.

Once the first sweep was done, the thief began to transport everything to her ship. Oetan's vessel was equipped with the latest model of Sagussan transporters; Irunmei got them for her shortly after she began her double-life as Kuk Numon. Equipped with sound-muffler fields, they didn't make that annoying ringing noise whenever they were activated. Perfect for someone who needed a quiet way of slipping in and out of places where she would normally never be invited. Once the last batch was whisked to safety, she took a deep breath before beginning her second sweep. Taught by some of the best professional safe-crackers working for galactic underworld overlords like Gegranko, Oetan knew it was a fundamental mistake to leave a target behind without making DAMN sure that all the good stuff had been found and appropriated.

The second sweep produced some more things of interest, including the House Bible, the ancient tome all the Imperial Houses used to keep track of everyone within their extended families. Seeing this, Oetan could only smirk as she gently lifted it off its podium, moving it over to a table to place it in a stasis field for transport up to her ship. The House Bible was the most precious artefact for those who still upheld the pre-Revolution traditions. Stealing it back in the days of the Imperial Round was viewed as an act of war. Destroying the House Bible -- as Princess Pyem had done when she had moved to erase her family's existence from history -- was seen as the one sure-fire act needed to destroy a House.

Pausing as she considered that, Oetan hummed as she wondered what to do with THIS prize. Destroying it wouldn't matter much to those of the Aruka House who had abandoned the old ways. The thief doubted Irunmei could find out if there were any others who would want this passed on to them. And she knew that if a Noukiite got her hands on this, it wouldn't survive. Her eyes then sparkled as the perfect recipient for this gift came to her. Grinning, she pulled out her private communicator to double-click the auto-transmitter. It had been set to the scrambled frequency Irunmei used to contact her.

A beacon flashed in her goggles' HUD. "What is it, Oetan?" a tired voice echoed in the thief's ear.

"I'm sending something," Oetan replied. "The Aruka House Bible. My present for the Elder Mother."

She tapped the micro-transporter function on the status field generator to activate it. Linking it to her transmitter, she waited for her ship's systems to whisk it away from here to Kuk Numon's residence out in the east end of the city. A moment later, the voice came back in her ear, "Received."

"Give them my love, Auntie."

"Always. Have fun."

"Always. You, too."

The communicator was flicked off.

* * *

"Oetan?!" Negau shrilled. "KOA OETAN?! The master thief of Gomiana?!"

"The same," Numon reported as she tenderly closed the House Bible. It would be on its way to Sagussa as soon as she could contact people who nominally supported her via the Dreamscape with the news. "I adopted her as a niece when I saved her from Ip'ihu assassins who killed her parents. Her father was a literal 'outcaste from the Outcastes;' he didn't want anything to do with killing Urusians. Her mother was one of the Freedom Five-Hundred Clans; 'Koa' is a local corruption of the Noukiite word 'kaihu' . . . "

"Doctor," the intelligence chief automatically translated.

"The same," her lover replied. "They're the only part of the Freedom Five-Hundred rated as K'uot'hu."

"Ah!" Negau breathed out as she nodded in understanding as the true history of the infamous thief -- as well skilled in her own way as the legendary Arsène Lupin III was on Earth -- began to dawn on her. The Ip'ihu as a whole held the Freedom Five-Hundred Clans with greater respect than they did other Urusians, but they were still "dog people" to the Noukiite outcastes. In this life, no better than slime, deserving little mercy from the Ch'uoeuk when it came their time to face him at the Two Portals. To actually MARRY one, have a CHILD with one, would make any self-respecting Ip'ihu nauseous. "So why are you having her go through Insa's house?" Negau asked. "What do you hope she'll find there, Numon?"

Numon sighed as turned back to slip into bed beside her lover. "She'll tell me if she finds something important. Like that," she added as she nodded to the pilfered House Bible.

Negau smirked as she leaned over to gently draw Numon into her arms.

* * *

"What is this . . .?"

Oetan smirked as the readout flashed on her goggles' HUD. A hidden door in the wall of the master bedroom. Yes, that seemed right. The size and the layout of the rooms didn't match up in some places; power conduits and the like took up less room in an Urusian home than in most other places across the local cluster. Okay, time to find out what Insa had been hiding.

Drawing out her lock-breaker, Oetan placed it over the hidden door. Seeing the device go to work, she nodded. Okay, this would take a while. Fair enough. Time to do the third sweep of the rest of the house before she would come back here to see what was behind the wall. With that, she got to work.

The third sweep lasted as long as the other two. This time, nothing of interest came up. With that, the thief returned to the hidden door. Noting the lock-breaker had got through the security system here, she slid the door open to look inside the darkened space behind. A space that then lit up with emergency lights.

Hissing to herself -- the master bedroom had opened windows that could be looked through from nearby buildings -- Oetan sprang inside, closing the door as quickly as she could behind her. Breathing out as she cursed herself for making such an amateurish mistake in the first place, she squared her shoulders before she took a look at what was inside. Her jaw then dropped to the floor in shock.

"Hello."

* * *

"Oh, my . . . "

"Impressive, isn't he?"

"Y-yes . . . " the flustered flight attendant, her cheeks as red as poppies in bloom, stammered as she gazed at the panting, quite dishevelled -- not to mention unclothed in all the right places -- teenager sitting in the one of the privies of the Interstellar Shuttleways passenger liner. She, having just emerged from hyperspace, was currently entering the atmosphere over the eastern coast of the North Pacific Ocean, on final approach to Edwards Air Force Base in California near Los Angeles. Construction of the consortium's Earth transport hub in Tokyo -- to be located at Ichihara in Chiba prefecture, just across the bay from Japan's capital -- was ongoing. Thus, those aliens who wished to visit this world (and who did not possess their own spaceships, of course) had to fly into the United States first before being shuttled via passenger jet to the Land of the Rising Sun or elsewhere. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, she gazed on the other teenager present. "Er, i-if you don't m-mind my asking y-you this, is he n-normally like . . .?"

"Pretty much so, I'm afraid," he replied, his bright chestnut eyes -- some would mistake them as blood red from a distance -- flashing with amusement at the present situation. The poor woman appeared to be in her mid-thirties, old enough to be the teenagers' mother if she had found her mate early enough in life. "It's been plaguing him since he first entered puberty, unfortunately. Then again, he's never had much in the way of lovers of any sort since he was stuck in the orphanage. I hope to help him change that sometime soon. Please don't alarm yourself about it, Miss. He'll be right as rain before we land."

The woman stared at him. "Are you s-sure, Mister Nek . . .?"

"Quite," he assured her with a smile. "Now, if you wouldn't mind . . .?"

The flight attendant took a moment to consider what the man was trying to ask her, and then she jolted. Nodding apologetically to them, she quickly retired, closing the privy's door behind her so she could return to her duties. Once they were alone again, Nek took a deep breath before he moved to kneel before Hicha, his hands reaching out to tenderly caress the latter's manhood all the way to orgasm with hands and lips. As it happened, Hicha gritted his teeth to prevent himself from shouting out in delight; it was his initial burning desire for intimacy that had made the poor attendant burst in on them in the first place. Taking several deep breaths to calm himself and let him regain control, he hissed out, "Damn . . . " as his hands reached over to tenderly thread through his lover's hair around his horns.

Nek gazed up at him. "Better?"

"Somewhat," Hicha admitted as he gazed at the deckhead, his deep blue eyes closing as he kept stroking Nek's silky hair, his fingers falling over the latter's horns in yet another tag, once more affirming their commitment to each other as mates for life. They had been lovers for four years, since both had entered puberty. In the orphanage located near the Abbey of the Maidens of Aruka on Shingetsu, few cared about what the children did with each other after light's out. That had been enough for Hicha and Nek to develop a bond few married couples among Urusians, Oni or Seishin, ever constructed during the duration of their lifetimes.

Nek began to gather some sanitary napkins to help clean his lover before they would return to their seats for the final approach into Edwards. Hicha remained in place as his lover went to work, his eyes remaining closed as images flashed in his mind. Images of a girl with ultramarine blue hair and eyes of brilliant turquoise, she possessing the mixture of harsh-looking head-ridges, a beautifully sculpted jaw and inviting lips that he had, finally, identified as belonging to the adopted daughter of Redet Lum.

Moroboshi Reiko.

Moving to stand and dress himself before he followed Nek back into the passenger cabin, Hicha tried not to beat his forehead as he yet again asked the question that had plagued him when the Noukiite's identity finally came to him when news of the Konton matter flashed through the infonets: Why HER of all the people in the local cluster for him to desire? And not just him; Nek had experienced those selfsame dreams about the same woman. In the Names of the Maidens, why? Neither were of the group of kids the Sagussans rescued from Shingetsu years ago, sometime after the hideous slaughter of nine-tenths of the colony's population by the Lannarkites. Neither Nek nor Hicha had been born until a couple years after the Battle of Uru. Compassionate Daishi'cha had adopted all of those kids, they electing to live their lives on that far-away world beyond the Galactic Barrier. And while both Nek and Hicha were quite high-psi for their race, they didn't possess the level of abilities common to anyone blessed with a Sagussan genotype.

Taking their seats, they quickly buckled themselves in as the dark sky outside glowed a fiery red as the passenger liner began to plunge through the mesosphere, the curvature of the Earth appearing to both sides beyond. Glancing both ways, they exchanged a knowing look before linking hands and relaxing themselves. It wouldn't be long now before the ship touched down at the desert base. Once they cleared customs and immigration, they would be shuttled from Edwards to Los Angeles International, just in time to catch the United air flight straight into Tokyo's Narita airport. After that, Fate would decide.

"Will she like us?" Hicha whispered.

"We'll have to wait and see," Nek advised.

* * *

"AH-CHOO!"

Mina jolted as Reiko's sneeze rattled the windows of the Shin-kansen train currently making its way down the Toohoku line from Sendai to Tokyo station. "Bless you, Rei-chan! Are you alright?!"

The Noukiite moaned as she sat back in her chair. "Damn! Someone's talking about me!"

An eyebrow arched. "Any idea who it might be?"

"Dunno . . . "

* * *

"It was really nice of you to take us out of that awful place."

Oetan blinked as she found herself staring at the deckhead of her ship's master bedroom, her body still reverberating from the orgy she had just engaged in. Snuggled to either side of her were a lovely black-haired, blue-eyed Seishin woman and a handsome man with the same eye and hair colour, he looking like he was the girl's twin brother. Which, she had learned before they began to "properly" express their gratitude for her allowing them to escape their "mother's" home, he was.

At least genetically.

"It's alright," she quietly replied, her voice faint as the information download she had received over the last couple of hours processed in her mind, as she allowed Megu (the girl) and Zao (the boy) to snuggle closer to her. "All in a day's work, in the end."

Yep.

It was official now.

Aruka Insa had been one very SICK puppy.

Born barren, she had taken advantage of a chance to have children GROWN for her through cloning of her genes thanks to the Avalonians, that brokered through a Niphentaxian middleman who managed to ensure Insa's true nature hadn't been detected by any of Gloriana's people before all three -- two sons, Popok and Zao; plus a daughter, Megu -- were delivered to her in secret. How she managed to hide the truth of their creation from Urusian society was a mystery to Oetan, but given the woman's friendships with conservative politicians and businessmen in Onishuto -- both her own personal friends and the friends of her late husband, Aruka Irin (a member of the old Imperial Round who had been killed by a rampaging Moroboshi Ataru the day prior to the Second Colony Four Massacre) -- it wouldn't have been too hard. And from what Oetan had learned in the brief time she had been able to mind-probe Megu's and Zao's memories, Insa had been a pretty good mother for them -- until puberty came and she began to see her younger son in a whole new light.

The image of Zao actually doing THAT with Insa . . .!

_Times like this, I wish I hadn't have agreed to do that blood-transfusion with Auntie after I went on my first 'date' with that john in Niouto_, the thief mused to herself as Zao's breathing evened into peaceful slumber. As her hand came up to gently threat his hair, Oetan blinked as Megu shifted her head around to kiss the curve of her jaw. A glance over earned her a kiss on the lips, and then, on seeing the flash of worry in the younger bioroid's eyes, she asked, "What?"

Megu's eyes bowed. "You're not going to leave us somewhere, are you?" she timidly asked.

Oetan winced as she remembered how she had found Megu and Zao. The hidden room in Insa's house was a private bedroom for the two bioroids; they had been in the nude when Oetan stumbled onto them. It had been, in fact, more prison than bedroom; the room itself had come equipped with a life-stasis field that had frozen Megu and Zao in place whenever they were alone. Only when someone came through the hidden door from Insa's bedroom would the stasis field turn off and the bioroids would be allowed to run free.

_If they ever did_, Oetan mused to herself as she leaned up to kiss Megu's forehead.

The discovery of Insa's other "children" had been the tip of the proverbial asteroid. That room had also served as a top-secret storage space for the most precious of their "mother's" possessions. Among the things Oetan lifted from there were a series of data disks dating from a couple of centuries ago, around the time of the Union Revolution if Oetan's technical knowledge was on the ball. Her broker in K'ahuch would be able to get hold of the right equipment to probe into their memory and find out what had been stored there. But the true mother lode came in several long carrying bags that had been in a drawer where Megu normally kept her small wardrobe. Carrying bags that could only contain one type of object.

It just took one glance at the maker's marks on one of the eunuch's blades to make Oetan realise her ticket into respectability among her father's society had just been handed to her on a platter of emerald.

Before she allowed Megu and Zao to express their "thanks" to her for their rescue, Oetan got her ship out of orbit and directed her on autopilot for Noukiios. The Rovers watching over the frontier between the Union and the Dominion might detect her ship, but Irunmei would ensure the news of her trip would remain top secret. And with the cloaking device -- another gift from Oetan's "aunt" -- there was no chance for Ip'ihu patrols to get in her way as she crossed the frontier and passed between Okusei and Kurrusei before she entered the Ch'uokyuk system. Much that she did respect her father's people -- as much as she did her mother's -- the Ip'ihu as a whole needed to finally get with the times. The pain of her parents' deaths had long since faded from Koa Oetan's heart, so she didn't feel any personal need to seek revenge against her paternal grandfather's war party. But if there was ever to be any chance for REAL peace between Noukiite and Urusian, the Ip'ihu had to be either de-fanged or shoved off somewhere where they wouldn't cause mischief. Any idea of "including" the Outcastes in mainstream Noukiite society was just asking for trouble.

"No," she promised before looking up. "Lights."

The room went dark as she closed her eyes, Megu adjusting her head on Oetan's shoulder so she could be more comfortable as she fell asleep. The trip would be a slow one; breaking into Insa's apartment had been emotionally draining for the thief -- the _good_ jobs always did that to her -- and she needed to have her wits about her when she dealt with her broker. Old Master Rup' was a miser when it came to parting with his money. Haggling prices with him was like trying to extract a starwhale's molar teeth: it could be done but it often seemed to take too much energy and the results were never what you expected.

* * *

"Good morning, Maki. Feel better today?"

"'Morning, Miss Numon," Maki hailed before she stepped into Numon's parlour. The latter was alone; Negau had left to go to work just as Oniboshi had begun its rise over the eastern foothills. Nodding thanks as her host poured her a cup of spice tea, she took a deep breath. "I did it."

"I know," Numon replied. "The news of it happening's getting out over the infonet right now."

"It had to be done."

The businesswoman stared at her, and then she nodded. "Yes, it did. So what will you do now?"

Maki blinked as she considered what to say, and then she replied, "I don't know. I still have to speak to the people in the Interior Ministry to get my name changed, but after that . . . "

"People may come to seek you out."

The younger woman gazed at her host. "Who?"

"Various interests who are concerned over what Lara's actions provoked and how that would ultimately reflect on our relations with Earth. And by extension, elsewhere." A sip of her tea. "The Alliance Treaty between our planets is the culmination of a long process that began centuries ago, when our ancestors looked out at the third world of Sol and asked themselves why was it the Terrans were left all alone when the Seifukusu rampaged across the cluster. Envy turned to genuine interest, then to respect and admiration, and then -- when the Ipraedies pushed the matter -- into a desire to protect those people from what the galaxy at large could ultimately do to them. It was a first contact long in coming, Maki. When it happened, most people here were happy. But very few of them ever took the chance to sit back and ask themselves what having relations with the Terrans would ultimately mean. Not just for us but for them, too. Hence, the reaction when the previous contacts between Earth and Zephyrus finally became public knowledge. And I don't think I need to mention the Sagussans and how they succeeded where we, in the long run, failed miserably."

"We were talking DOWN to them," Maki noted. "The Sagussans spoke directly TO them."

"With respect and a genuine desire to deal with them as equals regardless of the technological differences and the fact that the Terrans are still developing a world society they could call their own," Numon acknowledged with a nod. "Oh, yes, there were many mistakes the Sagussans made along the way, but they showed they were willing to learn from those mistakes. In the long run, Maki, we haven't. There are the individual cases -- Lum and Ataru, for example -- but not as one race looking equally at another. What Lara did, in the end, was something that was bound to happen sooner or later."

Maki nodded. "So what would the people who supported her want me for?"

"To take Lara's place in Tokyo."

Silence.

"To be the AMBASSADOR?!" Maki gasped.

Numon nodded. "To them, you're perfect for the role."

"WHY?!"

"Because they know -- even if they don't want to accept what they HAVE to do to REALLY mend relations between us and Earth -- they have to do a lot of work to make up for what Lara's actions has cost our people in the long term," the businesswoman replied. "To them, you're the perfect candidate to show the people in New York City all that is good and noble about our people. But at the same time . . . "

"They want me as their puppet."

Numon stopped as Maki seemed to collapse on herself, a nod turning her head. The younger woman before her was a true innocent in every sense of the term. Lara and Slan had done their best to keep what they were doing behind the scenes away from Maki's attention. Ever since she had been old enough to live away from the mansion, Maki had been sent to the best private schools in the Galactic Federation. In many ways, it had done her a lot of good. Maki simply hadn't any sort of opportunity to develop the prejudices Lara came to possess. Sending her to Earth would actually show the better sides of Urusians as a whole to the natives. In that, Numon and her supporters were in full agreement with their opponents in the government.

But if Maki was to remain untouched by her sister's shadow -- if she was to become the woman she really wanted to be, to be "Pyem Maki" and not just "Skelad Maki" -- she needed a lot of help.

"You won't be their puppet, Maki."

Maki blinked as she stared wide-eyed at her host. "I don't understand, Miss Numon . . . "

The businesswoman smiled. "You will soon enough. Now, it's time for breakfast."

Almost in echo of her words, Maki's empty stomach began to growl. Hearing that, the younger girl blushed deeply before laughter filled the dining room.

* * *

"So this is K'ahuch, huh . . .?"

Taking a deep breath of the late spring air, tinged with the smell of the open ocean and forests of fruit and vegetable trees in bloom, Caitlyn Bryan nodded before she stepped away from the transport that had brought her from Habitation One on New Avalon to Noukiios' most cosmopolitan city. The spaceport, which was actually located in one of the metropolis' western suburbs, It'suo, was connected by many public transport lines to the city core. It wouldn't take her too long, once she cleared customs and immigration, to make her way to the metropolis' main monorail terminal so she could make her way to Noukiyek. Once there, it would hopefully be a quick trip over to the district around the Yekk'eng Palace and -- if she did this right -- a private audience with some of the people who had been involved in Marina's escape from the Yekk'ap'. Once she did that, she would wait in Noukiios' capital until such time as her lover came here from Earth.

And then . . .

Then . . .

Oh, yes . . .!

Nodding thanks to the pilots who brought her here, Caitlyn made her way to the terminal so she could clear immigration. As she walked into the building, she tensed on feeling the presences of other Avalonians or Sagussans close by. Stopping, she glanced around, and then her eyes locked on three people standing beside a parked cargo ship fifty yards away, they meeting with two customs officials. Much to the expat Terran's surprise, all three were Seishin-Urusian in looks. Caitlyn knew an Urusian businesswoman named Numon Kuk had many dealings with the Avalonians, mostly in the realm of getting replacement bodies made for people she wanted to help for one reason or another. Caitlyn hadn't learned much more about that business; Numon normally dealt directly with President Otako and her senior staff in Habitation One. So . . .

She jolted on seeing the others tense, they turning to gaze her way. Feeling her cheeks heat, Caitlyn gave them a jaunty wave before she headed inside the terminal, she making her way towards a small line-up of people waiting to clear through the main immigration checkpoint. Most of the people in the line-up were Noukiites with the odd smattering of other races. While she did have a universal translator inserted into her mind, Caitlyn found some of the rapid-fire talk between the natives -- no doubt having come back to the home world from the colonies -- too intense for her to understand. Well, it didn't matter anyway . . .

"Hello."

The Canadian gasped, and then she turned to see one of the people she had seen on the tarmac standing behind her, personal documentation in hand. Yes, Seishin-Urusian, black hair combed down to her eyebrows and black eyes behind glasses. She was dressed in rather plain, unflattering clothes, more Noukiite in style than Urusian. "Hi," Caitlyn hailed back. "So where are your friends?" she asked as she took a look around.

"Staying on the ship for the time being," the other woman replied. "I just broke them out of stasis on Uru, so they don't have any sort of official documentation. Once I get to meet my friend in the trader's market in Nakkuk, I'll visit the immigration people and try to make some arrangements."

Caitlyn blinked. "Why would they be in stasis? And why on Uru? Did Numon Kuk try to . . .?"

"No," the other replied evenly, the look she was sending Caitlyn's way telling the Canadian plainly that she considered ANY implication of that nature quite insulting. "Auntie Numon would NEVER allow something like that to happen. Someone else arranged for them to be created and slipped them away from the factory before the Elder Mother or her people were any wiser."

"I see."

"Next, please?"

"That's you," the other woman warned.

Caitlyn acked, and then she walked over to slip into the corridor before one booth. "Sorry about that," she apologized to the immigration officer as she drew her documentation out of her travel bag.

"No problem. Welcome to Noukiios. Your passport, please?"

"Okay."

The passport, one designed to be recognised throughout the Galactic Federation worlds and the neighbouring powers, was handed over. The agent slipped it into the scanner, allowing the information to download into his machine so he could cross-reference her name with the master databank the Dominion kept on all visitors. A second later, a window flashing a special notation appeared on the screen. Seeing that, the immigration agent blinked, and then he felt his face grow pale as the implications of the message there sank in. He gazed on Caitlyn, he making a respectful bow. "Venerable K'eit'rin, welcome to the Dominion of Noukiios. You've been expected. If you'll excuse me, I'll have to inform my superiors of your arrival."

Caitlyn blinked. "Eh?"

He cautioned her with a held-up finger, and then he tapped his private communicator to relay a message to the other end in rapid-fire Noukiite. The visitor from New Avalon didn't catch all that he said, but she was quick to pick up her name -- or rather, the odd pronunciation of the name as it would be said using the local phonetic structure -- and Marina's. But how on Earth did . . .? Unless Marina herself told someone in authority about their relationship when she came out of the Dragon's Breath with the Empress . . .

A nearby office door opened, revealing an older man in a more intricate uniform. He came up to her, he giving her a respectful bow. "Heaven's blessings on you, Venerable Lady Bryan," he hailed in very good English. "Welcome to the Free Dominion of Noukiios. You've been more than expected since the news of your heart-mate's survival in the Yekk'ap' alongside Her Majesty became known to us all. If you'll allow me, I'll be more than happy to see to it transportation to Noukiyek is arranged right away."

Caitlyn gaped at him. "How did you know . . .?"

A humble look responded. "I personally cannot answer that, Venerable, but I believe your heart-mate was quite honest with Her Majesty about your relationship with her while they were within the Yekk'ap'," he mused. "Now, if you'll pardon me, we'll get you through customs so we can get you to the monorail terminal. You'll just be in time for the next express run to Noukiyek, arriving there sometime late this afternoon."

The Canadian took a moment to absorb that, and then she nodded. "Thanks!"

* * *

"Who's that?" Oetan asked.

"Her?" the other immigration agent wondered as she gazed on the blonde visitor from New Avalon, and then her eyes widened as it came to her. "I think she's the Venerable Lady K'eit'rin Puraian from Earth, the heart-mate of the Lady Muchuk'a Marina of Taisos, Her Majesty's companion in the Yekk'ap' all these years."

The thief took that in, and then she gazed on the other woman. "Muzuka Marina's heart-mate? I didn't know she had a relationship with anyone before she got stuck in that place."

"It's just getting out," the agent mused.

"Obviously."

* * *

"Nia?"

"Yes, Lady?"

An annoyed breath escaped the hybrid as she stopped, and then she glared at the priestess. "Lady Pizalna's Fleece Laces, woman! Would you MIND?!" Marina demanded as she tried to loom over Niap'yeng. Both had left the Moroboshi home for a walk around Tomobiki. They were now at a crossroads some blocks from Onigakkou Elementary School. "Jeez! I don't need to hear that crap from everyone . . .!"

"Marina, you WILL be hearing it a lot from many people on my planet," Niap'yeng warned her as she walked up to stand behind her; she had normally kept a couple metres behind the hybrid as they had been walking around the town. "Unlike what your reputation on Yehisril and Fukunokami might paint you as, you're now a hero to my people. You were there in the Yekk'ap', keeping Her Majesty company and befriending her; if you WEREN'T there, who knows WHAT might have happened. There was no guarantee she might have encountered Admiral Ye-Yi or any of his concubines had they remained there longer; we only met each other when all of us who accompanied P'yeknu aboard the _Koishii Moroboshi_ were flung into the Yekk'ap'. Even more, you've earned Her Majesty's trust enough to be given custody of her . . . " -- she pointed to Aeyek-hup'uk, the eunuch's blade currently strapped onto her belt -- "On a permanent basis. You may not have recognised Her Majesty as a mate as you did Caitlyn Bryan, Marina, but that doesn't diminish what you've done."

Marina blinked as she took that in, and then she snorted. "What I've done?" she derisively echoed the priestess' statement, and then she turned away to stare into the sky. "What in Purgatory's name have I really done, Nia?" she asked, a pained look flashing in her eyes. "I killed my father . . . "

"Who abused both you and your mother outrageously," Niap'yeng cut in. "And at the time you sent him to face the Ch'uoeuk, you believed your mother's life was in mortal peril."

The hybrid waived that off. "Mom turned around and threw me out of the house . . . "

"She was suffering the pains of a broken recognition bond. You yourself know what that means."

"I ran away to Oyatsui, where Gilpirko hunted me down and nearly murdered my lover . . . "

"You had no idea he was alive, Marina. Your mother never told you about him, remember?"

"Ran like a coward to Gomiana where Nassur found me . . . "

"You did that to protect Caitlyn."

"Escaped from _Renegade_ . . . "

"You had no idea what Nassur was doing to you."

Marina shrugged. "So what did I do, Nia?"

"You defied all those who looked down on you, wanted to pigeon-hole you into being something that revolted you to the core of your being," Niap'yeng said. "You proved you were better than they, Marina. You never gave up. In the Yekk'ap', you prepared yourself; deep in your heart, you never gave up on the hope of escaping it and you constantly encouraged Her Majesty to think the same way. And it was enough to make P'yeknu start dreaming of you two. She told you that, didn't she?"

A snort escaped her. "Yeah, she did. But still . . . "

"You have a home with us now, Marina."

The hybrid stared at the priestess. "What about Mom and Gilpirko?"

"They will be dealt with," Niap'yeng promised her, a knowing smile crossing her face. "Your half-brother's arrogance will eventually be the death of him. He will ultimately fail in his quest to win back his mother's love. I've already foreseen it, Marina; I did a fire reading at the Temple before I came here to stay close to you, P'yeknu and Mina. As for your mother, there are other elements involved, but she too will answer for all the pains she has caused you, not to mention all of those you love."

Marina took that in, and then she tensed. "Nia, I swear . . .!" she hissed as she moved to glare Niap'yeng down, "If you EVER sic that soul-sucking vampire you call a friend on Mom . . .!"

"I won't have to do that, Marina," the priestess calmly said.

They stared at each other, and then the shadow of a smile crossed Marina's face. "You're good, Nia."

"I have to be. It's part of the job description."

Hearing that, the hybrid blinked, and then she roared with laughter. That caused a shriek of fright to echo from behind the two. Spinning around, both noticed a teeth-chattering Seq Ran standing there, she staring wide-eyed at Marina, her body quivering with mortal terror. Around her feet, several grocery bags lay, their contents spilled over the road. Marina stared at her, and then she asked, "Who's this?"

"Seq Ran, formerly Aruka Ran," Niap'yeng answered. "One of Lum's friends."

"I wouldn't call this mother of all airheads one of Mom's 'friends,' Nia."

Ran jolted, and then outrage crossed her face as she turned just as Reiko and Mina walked up, they having come down from the Tomobiki-chuuou subway station on their way to the Moroboshi home. "Oh, hello, Reiko-chan," the Seishin woman hailed, her voice as thick as molasses in faux sweetness as she tried to glare the younger woman down. "Why aren't you up at your little school?"

Reiko stared evenly at her, she not the least bit bothered by Ran's presence or the hatred underlying each of her words. She then gazed apologetically at Niap'yeng. "Please forgive the pathetic little ch'ekuo, Nia. She's never been able to learn that the Universe doesn't bend itself to her warped wishes."

A volcano exploded behind Ran. "**_WHAT DID YOU JUST CALL ME, YOU LITTLE SLAVE-BRAT?!_**"

The younger women didn't look the least bit impressed by her bluster. "Gee, Rei-chan," Mina spoke up as she glared at Ran. "It seems she's as _stupid_ as you've always said she was."

"Yeah. I wonder whatever possessed the members of the Special Committee to allow her to remain on Earth in the first place," Reiko added, her gaze on Ran remaining in place.

"So what's the trench-wave's big problem?" Marina wondered.

Ran spun on her. "**_WHAT DID YOU JUST CALL ME, YOU MURDERER?!_**"

"As I said, Marina, she can't hack the fact that Mom and Dad finally got tired of putting up to her 'sweet, innocent, little ol' me' act," Reiko explained. "Shortly after I came to Earth, she got together with some of Dad's other enemies here in town to try to have me sent back to Hakaech." She turned back to gaze on Ran. "Pity by that time, Great-grandmother hired Shogai Dakejinzou to act as Dad's bodyguard. I got rescued along with Nia and all the other Lost Stars. And she was almost made to breathe vacuum."

"It would've been no great loss," Marina noted.

"Indeed," Niap'yeng added. "So, P'yeknu, where is this Tampopo's your father speaks so highly of?"

A gargled intake of breath made everyone look back towards Ran. Or rather, to where Ran had just been standing; she was running for her scoutship home in a cloud of dust, she screaming her head off. Watching her vanish, the four women exchanged looks, and then they burst out laughing as they headed downtown.

* * *

"You may have stumbled onto something very important here, Oetan."

Standing before the counter of the small shop located in one of the back alleys of K'ahuch's Nakkuk district near the monorail station, Koa Oetan blinked on hearing her host's statement, and then she leaned on the hard surface as she stated intently at him. "What do you mean by that, Master Rup'? I know they date from the time of the Liberation War, but how could they be seen as _that_ important . . .?"

The gregarious, past-middle age antiquities dealer held up a gnarled finger to silence the thief's words as he moved to explain, just like he had done in his youth when he was a teacher of ancient history at King Muchach University, Noukiios' premiere post-secondary school, in Kuchch'ek: "You know the arguments concerning the older ch'ehek and who was granted title to them in the wake of the Liberation."

A snort. "Everyone and his wolf knows that, Master Rup'. Or rather, I should say everyone and his wolf _seems_ to know all the arguments. I think you're about to enlighten me."

Eyu-Kuch Chusu-Rup' glared reproachfully at her. "Impudent child!"

Oetan gave him a cute smile in return. Seeing that, the retired professor shuddered before he waved her down. "Anyhow, according to the Final Statement on Relations issued by President Eyu-Hek and President Aruka Toridal in 4929, the planets in dispute -- not only our three ch'ehek, but the three Urusian ch'ehek closest to them -- were to be divided (and I'm quoting now) . . . " He emphasised this with a wagged finger. "On the criteria of 'the power best suited to develop them.'" A shrug. "Of course, as time marched on, that phrase was twisted by the racist hotheads on both sides to imply THEIR planet was the best one suited to develop them, ALL of them!" A sigh. "It wasn't what either man intended."

"That's easy to understand," Oetan mused. "It was the twisting around of that phrase by the Imperial Round that allowed them to get away with secretly supporting the colonial militias on Machibusu, Baiseki and Tamamono. Since the government's 'official' policy declared Okusei, Kurrusei and Tunchusei were Urusian worlds, anything that could be done to help make Onishuto's claim 'official' was permitted."

"Exactly. But few people on the Urusian side, my dear, have ever tried to understand what were Aruka Toridal's true motives. His hands were effectively tied by the Urusian Congress; they managed to push him out of the presidency five years later because he wasn't seen as doing the 'right' job for his people." Rip' pointed a finger at Oetan. "Put yourself in his shoes! Uru and all its ch'ehek were, at the time, trying to recover from a six-year civil war. His people needed to rebuild their infrastructure, not to mention throw off the shackles the old Empire had forced on them for so long. And he knew that we -- not just the Ip'ihu on our ch'ehek, but also everyone on Noukiios itself (and even the Freedom Five-Hundred Clans and their friends) -- would fight if pressed. Even better, Toridal had a good ally in Eyu-Hek Chusu-Nicha."

The thief nodded. "So they agreed to keep the Final Statement vague when it came to the colonies."

"It was the best way, they believed, to keep the hotheads on both sides of the frontier happy," Rup' concluded. "It worked for the most part on _our_ side. It didn't for the most part on _their_ side. We had the President's writings and secret recordings of those meetings. Of course, the Urusians, when they were presented with this evidence, always scoffed everything off as a mass forgery. But . . . "

His finger tapped the discs Oetan found in Aruka Insa's secret storeroom. The thief looked at her broker for a moment, and then she asked, "Are you implying those might contain the recordings President Toridal might have made in his meetings with President Eyu-Hek?! Master Rup', the chances of that . . .!"

"Are very good when you remember Toridal was the Most Venerable Syl's brother, Oetan!"

Oetan blinked as she took that in, and then her eyes started to widen. Aruka Syl, the raven-haired, brown-eyed revolutionary who had, thanks to her martyrdom in Onishuto in the Noukiite year 4923, ignited the Union Revolution that led to Noukiios' liberation from the rule of the Imperial Round. The very same woman whose body had been retrieved by the Gatherer just as she died -- retrieved in person by the Elder Mother of Sagussa herself, in fact! -- so she would become Daishi'cha #76073, later named "Sylia," the first commander of Sagussa's elite special missions force, Pathfinder Troop Six. The woman who's demand for freedom for the masses had haunted Uru since, inspiring generations of future agitators such as Seq Yedris and Dedron Sil.

Considering that, Oetan nodded. "I should ask Auntie to look over the House Bible I lifted out of Aruka Insa's apartment to see if there is a direct relation between Insa and Commander Sylia. From what I know of Urusian house bibles, they're always kept in the possession of the nominal Head of House. I know President Toridal remained as the Head of the Aruka House until he died; I saw it in the House Bible before I passed it on to the Elder Mother Noa." A hum. "A pity Lady K'yechsungi killed that idiot over Konton. It would have been interesting if the Empress and Admiral Ye-Yi could have dragged her to Hech'uo-t'ach and let the Nakkuk-nekk'ek'a have their way with her. It might have been interesting."

"A pity indeed," Rup' breathed out, and then he flicked his eyes to the bagged eunuch's swords Oetan had also retrieved from Insa's home. "What are you going to do with them?"

She grinned. "Return the one that caught my eye to her proper owner, and then get his advice on what to do with the others. Not to mention any future ones I might find when I go hunting on Uru."

The old academic's eyes went wide. "Oh . . .!"

* * *

"DAMN that brat . . .!"

Shuddering as she stormed into the kitchen of her grounded starship, Ran dropped her grocery bags on Mr. Counter as she moved to prepare herself some tea. Sitting at her kitchen table after the spicy drink was made, she took several deep breaths to calm herself down. But calm wasn't coming to her today.

It rarely ever did when it came to Moroboshi Reiko.

Ran hated the Noukiite woman. She had hated her since the day the bone-headed brat used her telekinetic powers to nearly bludgeon Rei to death when he had succumbed to his overwhelming hunger and tried to eat her breakfast. After that, Ran had been willing to help Mendou Shuutarou, Megane Aisuru and the others of Lum's Bodyguards in their plan to get rid of the Noukiite; she was the one who made the call to Hakaech to have the Masters of Noukiios come to Earth and retrieve their missing esper-slave. It didn't work in the long term; Ataru, who had officially adopted Reiko a couple days before, took off to rescue his daughter with the help of Shogai Dakejinzou. And thanks to the help of Lum, Nassur, Benten, Oyuki and the usual crew, the other Lost Stars had been found and liberated.

If Reiko's sudden barging into the lives of the Tomobiki gang -- especially into Lum's and Ataru's lives -- hadn't coincided with the tumultuous period between the incident on Icarus and the Tomobiki Spirit War, the chances might have been good she could have been sent to the Abbey of Lyna on Magairu with the other Lost Stars, to be found by her real family and returned to her home planet.

It didn't happen. As Ataru endured his brutal path to maturity -- falling on the support of his grandmother Nagaiwakai and his sister Nokoko so he could resist the influence of Lum and Ataru's parents, plus whatever support Tomobiki gave them -- he put his foot down HARD on many things the Oni had forced on him since their "engagement" at the end of the First Tag Race. Reiko's adoption by Lum's "Darling" had been one of the things she had been given no choice but to accept if she ever hoped to finally say the "I dos" with Moroboshi Ataru. And despite the feelings and beliefs Noukiites and Urusians commonly held concerning the other -- feelings Reiko expressed at every opportunity she could -- the Noukiite and Lum came to develop a deep bond, a sense of family that paralleled what Lum later developed with her other stepdaughter, Amora.

Ran had never been able to comprehend that, though, much less accept the Noukiite's presence in Lum's life. To the Seishin woman, Reiko personally represented the starting of the most traumatic period in Aruka Ran's tumultuous friendship with Redet Lum. Yes, that had been influenced by Ataru's confronting the Saikoo Jinseijitsu -- the non-corporeal mental database that was the living personification of his clan's in-house school of ninjitsu -- that had been fired into his subconscious mind when he was six. Yes, that led to things like Ran's near-execution at the hands of the Zephyrite Holy Inquisition when Ataru's "engagement" with Sunhair Windrider -- instigated by Moroboshi Nagaiwakai as a way to drive Lum out of Ataru's life once and for all -- became publicly known. And it led to Ataru gladly letting the darker elements of his very own soul -- the strange representation of Sagussa's Master of Entropy known as the Cyborg -- loose on Ran (not to mention those others Ataru had come to loathe after Icarus) whenever they offended him.

Of course, that dark time eventually ended when Ataru had regained his self-confidence -- thanks very much to the Sagussans -- and opened himself up once more to his former schoolmates from Tomobiki. To this day, Ran vividly recalled the scene on her property twelve years before, when Ataru (as Cyborg) had come to her rescue when her insane mother, Aruka Chena, had attacked her. How Ataru effortlessly ripped Chena apart -- when she was augmented by alien cybernetics so she could survive being impregnated by a Lannarkite egg, that done courtesy of her lover, the Vosian renegade Mikado Marine colonel Dosur -- without effort at all. Then he turned to offer Ran an Urban Assault Cannon, he publicly acknowledging the Sagussan belief that child abuse was punishable only by the death of the abuser, so she could decide Chena's fate.

Ran had not pulled the trigger on Chena -- not like Muzuka Marina had done on her father -- but she had been able to banish her mother from hers and her family's lives once and for all time.

She would always be grateful to Ataru for that.

Just as much as she was grateful to Lum for remaining as Ran's friend all these years.

But Reiko . . .?

Reiko . . .

Ran gritted her teeth, a thin smile crossing her face as she recalled the recent incident with Skelad Lara. How Nassur and Benten's spirits had possessed Lum enough to convince her -- and Ataru, too! -- to move back to Tomobiki from Oshika, thus leaving poor Reiko behind. Oh, sure, Reiko had helped when it came to the final fight with Lara's gang -- Ran shuddered as she remembered being telekinetically pitched through the sky by the Noukiite when she stormed down with her friends so she could help rescue Amora -- but what use was that girl in the long term? Reiko's attitudes towards all of Lum and Ataru's friends in Tomobiki hadn't changed in the years she had lived with her adopted parents up north. Visits by Ran to Oshika so she could see Lum always became very frosty whenever Reiko was home; it was during one of those visits that the Seishin woman finally learned the meaning of the insult "ch'ekuo." Oh, yes, Reiko had made it quite clear all along when it came to Ran: she was not wanted in the lives of either of her adopted parents. Nothing Ataru and Lum did could make the Noukiite change her mind about that.

And now . . .

Wait a minute . . .

Marina?

The Seishin woman's smile grew wide as it hit her. Finishing her tea, she stood up, marching to the grounded ship's pilotage platform. Sitting, she powered up the subspace communications system, and then dialled a number. A moment later, a screen in front of her flicked on, revealing the dazed look of a dark-skinned Vosian man. "Thank you for calling Home Base, headquarters of Nassur's Hunters, Mrs. Rei. My name is Hyakka; I'm the computer operator at the base. To where do you wish your call to be directed?"

"Hello, Hyakka-san!" Ran sweetly called out. "Can I talk to Hazel-chan, please? I want to report the presence of a known murderer on Earth now who might be threatening Nassur's daughter and Lum-chan's family."

Hyakka's eyes widened.

* * *

"P'yeknu?"

Reiko jolted on hearing that many-voice-in-lockstep sound, and then she turned to see K'yechsungi standing beside her. Taking a moment to swallow the forkful of kimch'i tchigae she had been trying to eat when the sin-destroyer arrived, she asked, "What is it, K'yech? What're you doing down here anyway? Aren't you supposed to be at the Temple keeping an eye on things?"

K'yechsungi sat beside Reiko; the two were, along with Mina, Marina and Niap'yeng, currently in Tampopo's Ramen and Beefbowl Bar, the cozy eatery that was Ataru's favourite restaurant in the whole of the town Ginza. "We received a call from Laurel Weaver concerning something that might interest you."

Reiko blinked as she tried to recall the name. "I don't know her . . . "

"The members of the Special Committee refer to her as 'Agent L.'"

A jolt. "Oh, her! What did she want, anyway?!"

"She was asked to investigate two young Oni men who had just arrived on Earth looking for work. They are orphans, having lived on Shingetsu all their lives. When she mind-probed them, she discovered both appear to have taken passionate interest in you." An amused smile crossed the sin-destroyer's face. "And we mean 'passionate' as in the same type of interest T'ichu presently demonstrates to you."

An eyebrow arched. "Really?" Reiko mused as Mina, she having heard K'yechsungi call her by the Noukiite translation of her name, walked over to stand beside her. "Why me, K'yech? Is it because of Mom?"

A shake of the head. "No, nothing concerning the Venerable Lum. In fact, when the mind-scan was done, Laurel found nothing that seemed to indicate any sort of secret plot against you, P'yeknu."

"I didn't realise the Men In Black made use of telepaths," Mina noted.

"Some of their agents underwent conversion into Avalonians after the final Tag Race," Reiko explained. "It was part of the deal between the United Nations and Aunt Gloriana when they decided to keep the bioroid factory in orbit over Sado-shima. Agent L was probably one of them." She turned back to K'yechsungi. "So what did they do about these two guys anyway? Did they try to detain them or anything like that?"

Another shake of the head. "No. There was no cause in Laurel's eyes to have them detained. They travelled from the spaceport to Los Angeles, then took the next flight to Narita. They should be arriving in Nihon sometime today. When Laurel contacted us about this matter, we felt it was only right to warn you."

Reiko took that in, and then she nodded. "Got anything on these two?"

K'yechsungi grinned as she pulled out a small datapadd from under her top, she handing it to her sister Lost Star. Reiko tapped the device on, and then she blinked as she stared at the pictures and basic biographies listed there. "Pretty cute," she mused aloud as she read the information.

"They are that," Mina noted; she was glancing over Reiko's shoulder so she could take in the information contained there. "Hicha and Nek. Why no family names, Rei-chan?"

"According to this, they were found as babies on Sakusei Station, and then moved to an orphanage on Shingetsu. Because no one's ever adopted them, they were never given family names; they can choose their own names only when they become of age -- or unless they're adopted by another family prior to becoming of age. Which won't be for a couple years yet," Reiko replied, and then her eyebrow arched as another detail on the padd became known to her. "No one was able to trace their origins? Even trying a DNA match? Odd."

"We will remain with you for a time being," K'yechsungi declared. "While we know Laurel is well-trained in sensing the thoughts of others, our own senses are much more accurate."

"Thanks," Reiko acknowledged that with a nod.

* * *

"You are a poet, young Shuutarou."

Hearing that wise voice, Mendou Shuutarou jolted, and then he turned to gaze on his host, he giving him a polite bow. "I dabble in it from time to time, but I admit that I'm not within your class, Admiral."

Ye-Yi Chusu-Hachhich nodded in approval before the two continued to walk down the long, tree-lined path leading to the famous commander's restored estate, located in the Yeksai district of Nichsuo, it located close to the southern continent's main planet-based naval facility. Walking behind them were the admiral's three lovers. Like Hachhich, they were dressed in casual modern-age civilians, though they were under arms: their eunuch's blades were strapped to an equipment belt tied around their waist, they also possessing current-issue disruptor pistols. The admiral himself was unarmed, though Mendou suspected such wouldn't be a burden to him should the shocking possibility of someone actually attacking him occur.

"A word of advice to your fellow servicemen, Shuutarou," the admiral said. "One of the things an officer candidate in my time had to do before he won His Majesty's commission was to compose a poem as part of his T'a-Eue. It was a way to show the candidate could demonstrate creativity. You have to admit, in the short time you've served in space -- especially in the instance where you got your ship shot out from under your feet -- such is not only a good thing to have but could easily become a survival requirement."

"Hai, Admiral, I do agree to that," Mendou replied. And it had been quite true. When the _Koishii Moroboshi_ had been ripped in half by a wave of energy from the Yekk'ap', it had been Mendou Shuutarou who had keyed the bridge's emergency survival systems, ensuring those who were there would live to fight another day. And with the Eo once more on the rise, that ugly possibility could come sometime soon, especially now that the Noukiite government had officially declared -- in a harsh echo of the words the T'yekhek Empress had declared to Admiral Invader the day she emerged from the Yekk'ap' aboard the _Odyssey_ -- that the problem concerning the pirates was the moral responsibility of the Urusian Union. Yes, both the Dominion Navy and the Ip'ihu irregulars would deal with any raid sent into Noukiite space. But any action directed against the pirates' new home base of Konton would have to be done at Onishuto's instigation.

Mendou doubted that would happen anytime soon. Having worked with Urusians on a regular basis since he graduated from Eta-jima and went to the Urusian Defence Force Academy, he believed he had come to understand much of the deeper social customs that governed the actions of Lum's people. Part of that psyche contained a sort of "self-denial" which came into play whenever something really bad happened. One only had to look at Lum's actions towards Moroboshi Ataru in the first two years of their relationship to see how that self-denial could eventually produce ugly results. The matter with the Eo -- and the connected matter with the Noukiites and the ridiculous dispute over Okusei, Kurrusei and Tunchusei -- was no different.

At present, the government in Onishuto was trying to absorb the fact that a million Urusians had just declared themselves independent of the Union, they electing to create their own state. The very idea of such a defection would be just too hard for many normal Urusians to take; it would seem as if there was some deep problems with their native society as a whole. Something that simply couldn't happen in their society.

It might not be a problem in the long term. Mendou knew, thanks to his good friend Ch'uchrakch'ut'a Yut'uch, that the overwhelming majority of the Eo were former members of the colonial militias of Machibusu and her two neighbouring coreward frontier colonies, Tamamono and Baiseki. People who had been driven by a belief, nurtured by two centuries of guerrilla warfare, that Noukiios had NEVER been entitled to those planets. And they were willing to kill every Noukiite who crossed their path to prove that point.

But even if they realised that, would the majority of Urusians accept what was needed to change it?

Much less ensure the Eo would never become a real threat to peace in the local cluster?

"What are your thoughts?"

The commander jolted, and then he gazed apologetically at his host. "Forgive me, Admiral. The matter of the Eo doesn't wish to allow my attention to focus elsewhere. Such as your lovely garden."

"Ah!" Hachhich breathed out. "That is understandable, lad. The Eo are not something to be forgotten, especially if this new generation proves as stubborn to accept facts as their predecessors."

"That is most likely, sir."

"Venerable?"

Everyone stopped, turning to see a young serviceman -- he dressed in the modern uniform of the Dominion Navy -- kneeling nearby, his head bowed low. "Yes, what is it?" Hachhich asked.

"The Base Commander's sincere compliments, Venerable," the newcomer began as he gazed respectfully on the old warrior. "He begs to inform you that a lady has come to the front gate bearing several seucheuchet' she appropriated from the recently-deceased 'empress of the Eo.' One of which, she claims, is yours."

Silence fell over the scene as the admiral's lovers exchanged shocked looks.

* * *

"It is good to see you, old friend . . . "

Seated in a meeting room in the administrative part of the Nichsuo naval base, Koa Oetan could only smile in delight as Hachhich took a moment to gaze fondly on his beloved K'ut't'irak, the only fragment of the admiral's flagship that survived contact with the Yekk'ap' in the wake of the Battle of Seueukhek (that did not fall into the grasp of the Dragon's Breath itself, as her master and his lovers had done). The eunuch's blade had been recovered by the survivors of that final battle with the Eo, and then interred in a memorial to him constructed at the orders of the Suhek Emperor. As to how it eventually came into Aruka Insa's hands, Oetan had no real idea, but she had suspicions. The Urusian Imperials may have looked down on her father's people as a whole, but they were admirers of beauty. And the eunuch's blades of Noukiios were, to the end, as beautiful as they were long lasting and deadly in the right hands.

Eyu-Teo Yeip'-Pen gazed curiously on the thief. "Lady Oetan, how is it you came to be in possession of the Lord Admiral's weapon? Much that he does appreciate her return to him . . . "

"Put frankly, Lady Pen, I stole it," Oetan replied straight-faced. "I am a thief; I'm sure the good commander is aware of my professional reputation." She indicated Mendou Shuutarou with a nod before she continued, "But I also like to think myself an honourable person. And when the woman who cared for me after my parents were murdered asked me to prove myself to my father's race, I felt, given my lifestyle, the only way to do _that_ was to ensure that all the treasures stolen by members of the Imperial Round during the Occupation are recovered and returned to their rightful place here on Noukiios. After all -- speaking from personal experience -- the one thing thieves detest is to have something stolen from them." She nodded at the sword in Hachhich's hands. "When I struck at Insa's home, I lucked out better than I expected."

"You did indeed, Oetan-san," Mendou mused.

Gazing intently at his visitor for a moment, Hachhich nodded before he held his sheathed blade out. Eyu-Aech Yeyeh-Uin walked up, a sword belt in hand. Taking K'ut't'irak in hand, the silver-haired woman secured it onto the belt, and then, with the help of her co-lover Eyu-Kaech Yech'u-Sen, she secured it around the admiral's waist. After they gave him loving kisses on his cheeks, they backed off as Hachhich relaxed his hands on both sides of the buckle. Nodding approvingly at the feel of his favourite weapon once more where it belonged, he stared at Oetan, he giving her a polite bow. "My eternal thanks, Lady Oetan. Now, let's look upon these other swords you brought with you."

The other carrying bags were unzipped, allowing the weapons to be drawn. Staring at the swords, Mendou could only nod in appreciation. While not having the graceful curve built into the blade of a katana, a eunuch's sword was constructed to similar standards. Like a katana, an eunuch's blade was single-edged -- that side was normally pointed down when the weapon was carried parallel to the ground -- with just a little of the opposite edge near the chisel-like tip also sharpened to allow a better cut when used in the thrust. The average blade was three shaku from tip to chappe, the hilt one-third that length. All gleamed bright silver, reflecting the nickel-chromed steel used to forge them. Many of them had hilts embossed in emerald with interwoven gold and silver lacing to allow for better gripping in battle.

"Beautiful," he breathed out, and then he jolted as Hachhich stared at him. "Sorry."

"It's alright, lad," the admiral noted. "The one difference between these blades and the weapon I saw you carry around when you first came to see me is this: the people who forged them literally gave up their whole _lives_ to create such beautiful steel. We say the average seucheuchet' takes half a lifetime to forge. That may be true. It may not be. It was never our place as warriors to know the secrets of a eunuch swordsmith's art. Some have said swordsmiths actually forged _dozens_ of blades over his lifetime, then melted each of them down into one final weapon to use. Some have said that swordsmiths would just work and work and work over the same piece of steel -- melting it, forging it, melting it again and forging it again and again until they were satisfied with the end result." A shrug. "Who knows?! But what we DO know is the people who made these weapons poured their very LIVES into them! THAT'S what makes them so special."

"Her forger's soul reside within the weapon," Mendou concluded.

A nod. "A good analogy . . . eh?!"

His eyes locked on the sword to his farthest right. Reaching over to take it into his hands, Hachhich gazed intently at the hilt for a moment before shaking his head. "Hichheksuch-t'ach . . .!"

"You recognise it, Kyesuo?" Pen asked.

"Aye, Pen. This is Kutit'kihap' Chacht'ap'."

Hearing that name, Sen, Uin and Pen gasped before they dropped to one knee, they averting their eyes from the weapon in their lover's hand, their right hands crossing over to form a fist over their hearts as their bowed their heads towards the ground. Oetan's eyes also bowed in respect, though she remained on her feet. Mendou quickly noticed this, and then he turned to Hachhich. "Sir . . .?"

"This was my Emperor's weapon," the admiral explained.

The Terran's eyes went wide as he took in that explanation. He then sensed Oetan gaze on him. "Now do you see why many Noukiites call Urusians 'dog people,' Commander?" the thief asked.

Mendou nodded in understanding. Taking a deep breath, Hachhich placed Chacht'ap' down with the other swords. "Let's be off to Suchkyuk," he said. "The Empress needs to be made aware of this." He stared at Oetan. "You will come with us, Lady Oetan," he added.

The thief jolted, and then she nodded.

* * *

"Excuse me?"

The janitor cleaning up the garbage cans at Tokyo Station perked on hearing that accented voice, and then he turned to see two teenage Oni men, they dressed quite conservatively even for their race, standing nearby, overnight duffel bags slung over their shoulders. "Hai, is there something wrong?" he asked.

They bowed to him. "Forgive us, Ojii-san, but we're looking for the subway that would take us to Tomobiki," the green-haired one stated as they gazed hopefully at him. "We just flew in from Los Angeles to Narita Airport. Could you show us which part of the underground do we use?"

Surprise crossed the older man's face. "You're from Lum-san's home planet, aren't you?"

"We are," the silver-haired youth declared with a friendly smile.

An eyebrow arched. "Don't you have your own spaceship?"

They blinked, exchanged a look, and then they started to chuckle. Noting the janitor's look of confusion, they gave him apologetic looks. "Sumimasen, Ojii-san," the green-haired lad said with a bow of his head. "Not all of us -- in fact, scant FEW of us! -- are as rich or as well connected as Mrs. Lum."

Hearing that, the older man blinked for a moment before he began to laugh at his gaffe. He pointed towards a gateway. "Take the Marunouchi Line from here to Ikebukuro Station. Once you're there, transfer to the Seibu Ikebukuro Line; that's an aboveground train. That'll take you right into Tomobiki. If you're looking for Lum-san's home, you should get off at Tomobiki-chuuou; you can transfer there for the Seibu Hooya Line for Tomobiki-nishi and Tomobiki-higashi. Tomobiki-chuuou's the centre of town."

"Thank you, Ojii-san," both men said as they bowed thankfully to him, and then they headed off.

The janitor watched them go. "Poor Onis," he muttered under his breath before he turned back to continue his duties. "Is there really such a thing . . .?" he wondered to himself.

Making their way to the place where they could purchase a ticket, Hicha and Nek slipped through the gates and made their way to the platform for the trains bound for the geographic eastern end of Tokyo's second-oldest subway route. It is late in the evening on this part of Earth; the subway itself would close down in a few more hours. With that, the congestion that normally haunted Tokyo's underground was absent. When they boarded the next train for Ikebukuro, the two young Onis found themselves sitting in a car with only a few other people. Both were quick to attract the attention of the other passengers, they doing nothing save gaze on them for a while before turning back to their business.

Eight stations later, they disembarked, making their way out of the underground for the boarding platforms for one of Tokyo's rural mass transit lines. Soon enough, they were aboard a train making their way west into Nerima and the outlying elements of the metropolis beyond. The crowds were a little less than what they encountered on the underground. For Hicha and Nek, it was welcome; being cramped in the economy section of a Boeing 747 for the nine-hour flight from Los Angeles to Narita hadn't been a treat.

Soon enough, the features of Tomobiki appeared beyond the windows of their train car. The Tarouzakura hill and the vast expanse of the Mendou estate, stretching from the southern to the western edge of the town. The Mizunokooji estate off to the northeast, hugging the border between Metro Tokyo and Saitama. The tiger-striped bulk of the Urusian embassy, it peeking out of the forest of homes and the odd apartment block. Tomobiki High School. The triple towers marking Tomobiki's town core. All this, both men had seen in their dreams and in the many travel brochures about this place they had read back on Shingetsu.

Getting off at Tomobiki-chuuou, they made their way through the gates and out one of the northern entrances. Stopping at a guide map to take in their surroundings, both exchanged a look, and then they nodded. They turned . . . and then stopped, their jaws nearly hitting the ground.

"Welcome to Tomobiki," Reiko called out to them, a smile crossing her face.

* * *

"Muzuka Marina . . .?"

"The very same."

Hearing Hazel's confirmation, the others sitting in a meeting room located deep in the urbanised section of the Home Base asteroid exchanged concerned looks. Since they had been forced to take control of Nassur's operation in the wake of his and his wife's disappearance twelve years before, the fifty hybrids born of the defunct Ipraedies Empire's Project: Superwarrior had done their best to ensure they lived up to his expectations. It had been very hard over the years, even with help given by Hazel's great-grandfather Varanko and Nassur's old partner Shogai Dakejinzou. But they had managed to make names for themselves, building up their reputations thanks to a lot of hard work and considerable levels of personal sacrifice. It was not just honouring Nassur and Benten. It had been a survival requirement.

"So what do we do?" Darsei, first of the hybrids, wondered. He had started to grow a moustache and beard, striving his best to look like a dark-skinned version of Nassur himself. Outside Hazel, his word was the one respected the most by the others. "She disappeared nineteen years ago, right out of Sensei's grasp. As far as the whole galaxy knew, she was dead. Why worry about her now even if she was found out to have lived inside that space-time nexus where they found Empress T'ich and Admiral Yi?"

"Who called in about her anyway, Kuriinba?" Kyonba, the crimson-haired base engineer, asked.

"Lum-sensei's so-called 'friend,' Ran," Hazel replied.

The eyes of everyone else in the room rolled. "Sensei never liked her," tall Daros noted.

"Neither did Moroboshi-sensei," Daros' girlfriend, Althea, added. By that phrase, the blonde hunter spoke of Ataru's uncle Komeru, who had taught the hybrids survival techniques while Nassur had been off on his nicha for his first wife Cinba, just before he recognised and married Benten. Ataru himself was always called "sempai" by the hybrids, they following Hazel's example.

"Did we acquire proof Marina-san is still alive?" Darsei asked.

Eyes locked on Hyakka. The nerdish computer operator sighed. "We did. The Sagussan embassy in Noukiyek City confirmed what happened when I sent a query their way." A pause, and then he added, "And she went to Earth to stay with the Moroboshis, so that confirms THAT part of the story."

Heads nodded in understanding. "Now all we have to do is ask this: WHY would Ran care about this woman?" Daros asked. "I mean, I've heard all the stories about Muzuka Marina. We all have. Still . . . "

"Sensei always warned us to not act without evidence," Althea noted.

Another chorus of head nodding. "What did you find out about her, Hyakka?" Hazel asked.

"Something that isn't mentioned in all the trash infonet stories about her." Hyakka tapped a control on the table before him. A holographic image appeared over the middle of the table, it slowly rotating. "This is Caitlyn Bryan, originally from Earth," the computer operator reported. "She was one of the five hundred people kidnapped by the Ipraedies years ago when they were making their first moves towards invading Earth. She's no different than Shogai-sempai's friend Tabitha Lee or Queen Oyuki's boyfriend Ryooki Koosei. She later escaped from Ipraedos and made her way to Oyatsui. It was there, twenty years ago, she met Muzuka Marina." A flick of the control changed the image. "This is what she looked like a year later."

"Lecasur's Eternal Soul!" Darsei croaked on seeing what had happened to Caitlyn after she had been attacked and raped, and then he turned to gaze on the other hybrid. "Was that because of Marina . . .?!"

"No!" Hyakka empathically replied, he shaking his head. "According to statements given by Bryan-san herself to Sensei and the authorities on Oyatsui -- that backed by Marina-san's statements when Sensei got the chance to interrogate her after he tracked her down -- she was attacked by a man reported to be named Gilpirko. Marina-san claimed him to be her half-brother, the only child from her mother's first marriage."

"Can we trace him down?" Hazel asked.

"I checked the principal family registry in Dysos," Hyakka reported. "No entry for him, either in relation to Marina-san's mother Wonsuna or any other person in the principality."

"Which means he's been declared sirmir'mhifif," Althea noted.

"Just like Yukio's mom," Hazel noted.

The others nodded in understanding. Despite the wishes of Yukio, the fifty-first of their group -- and currently, an earl countess in her home principality of Kyotos, she having gained that position after a decade-long career as a member of the Imperial Corps of Executioners -- it hadn't been hard for the others to realise what had happened to her mother, Nakanba. Much less her true relationship to Hazel -- and thus, to Varanko. "We could ask Yukio for her help," Kyonba proposed. "If this guy was brutal enough to do THAT to Bryan-san . . . " -- she nodded at the crippled Caitlyn's image -- "He might be wanted for other things in the Royal Kingdoms. Yukio could find out things, especially since her old sensei is from Dysos."

"I'll call her and ask," Hyakka stated as he clicked off the image.

The others relaxed. "What happen to Bryan-san?" Hazel wondered.

"She remained on Oyatsui until that famine struck and the Sagussans got involved," Hyakka explained. "Mie Seikou's sister Hotaru discovered her, then contacted a friend working for Elder Mother Gloriana to get a body cloned for Bryan-san. Once that was done, she moved to New Avalon. Last reports put her there."

The others nodded. "What do we do about Marina-san?" Naosu, the base doctor, asked.

"We do what Sensei would want us to do," Hazel declared. "We learn all the facts about the case that we can. Once we do that, _then_ we act. Not a second before." She smirked as she added, "Besides, why in Lecasur's name should we listen to the whims of someone as crazy as _Ran_ of all people?"

Laughter filled the room.

* * *

"AH-CHOO!"

Ran moaned as she rubbed her nose. Who was talking about her?

* * *

"Well?"

K'yechsungi tensed on hearing that question, and then she gazed on Ataru, she giving him a respectful bow. Both were standing in the basement corridor outside the door leading to his private study, they looking into the recreation room to see Reiko and Mina chatting avidly with Hicha and Nek. Beckoning him to step into the study so they could speak in private, the sin-destroyer answered, "We sense nothing evil about either of them, Venerable." As Reiko predicted while they were in the Yekk'ap', Ataru NEVER accepted being called by the highest personal title of respect given by natives of that world, "Most Venerable." "They are quite infatuated with P'yeknu. And quite accepting of T'ichu."

"That's a relief," he noted. Under normal circumstances, Noukiites were monogamous. The only time multiple-partner marriages were allowed was when one of the mates had been declared the last of his/her own immediate family line. Two of Admiral Ye-Yi's concubines -- Sen and Uin, Ataru recalled what Reiko had said about that when she had come back from Konton with the news of two of her genetic parents' survival -- had been declared as such before their last battle with the Eo and their entry into the Yekk'ap'.

However, Sagussans -- which Reiko had become after the last Tag Race -- didn't lean in that direction. It was socially -- and genetically -- acceptable to have multiple lovers, of the same sex and of the opposite sex. Looking at what happened to Reiko over the last while, she was following the classic Sagussan approach to birthing the next generation: seeking a bond-mate in Fujisawa Mina, then obtaining child-mates in Hicha and Nek (who themselves could be considered bond-mates; the empathic evidence was impossible to ignore).

"Venerable?"

He perked. "What is it, K'ye-chan?"

"Would T'ichu accept having multiple lovers?"

Ataru considered that for a moment, and then he nodded. "She should. Lum and I warned her about the way Sagussans go about having children. Deep down, I think she's bi-curious; her attraction to Reiko's more based on their long childhood friendship than any sort of recent outbursts of teenage lust."

She gave him a teasing look. "Which you are a profound expert on."

He blushed. "Hai, that's true." A nod towards Mina. "Once she gets a chance to sample things as a Sagussan -- or an Avalonian -- she should get with the programme."

"Darling?"

They turned to see Lum standing at the doorway. "What is it, Lum?"

The Oni nodded towards the recreation room. Ataru and K'yechsungi peeked down the hall to see that Reiko was already kissing Hicha, they holding each other quite close. Nearby, Mina had allowed Nek to lean on her lap, her hands tenderly ruffling his silver hair. Before they could decide what to do, Marina ducked out of the room, she quietly closing the door behind her. "Guess they need a little time to themselves," the hybrid quietly noted, and then she turned to walk past a petrified Lum to head upstairs.

Staring at his wife, Ataru sighed. "Lum . . .!"

The Oni didn't reply.

* * *

"Caitlyn! We meet at last!"

Caitlyn Bryan blinked as she found herself staring at the lovely image of Ei-T'ich Yesu-Nukyek as she stepped through the Achnek Gate to meet the visiting Terran in the middle of the Kaknu Bridge. Watching the empress make her way towards the visiting blonde, the half-dozen retainers -- to the end, blood and spirit descendants of the three thousand staff that had worked for the House of Yi during the Nehech dynasty -- paled in shock, though they did their best to mask their reaction. Under standard protocol, visitors had to pass through the inner of the Yekk'eng Palace's three entrance gates to be ushered into Achnek Hall (or any of the other appropriate halls; it depended on the circumstances behind the meeting) to be welcomed into the monarch's presence. Seeing the Empress run to her visitor like a squealing teenager was just not proper!

Before the stunned Canadian could react, Nukyek grasped both her hands in her own, she leaning up to place chaste kisses on the cheeks. That contact allowed Caitlyn a chance to scan the empress' thoughts and emotions. Joy on meeting someone who was very close to a dear friend. A sense of relief, too; that was mixed with a growing, gnawing fear deep in her heart. No doubt, the past week or so had been the purest form of hell for Nukyek. Finding herself thrust three centuries into her planet's own future. Learning she was effectively alone. All the usual social and cultural references she had depended on throughout her life swept away by the relentless march of history. And worrying about her future place in life, especially now that a debate concerning an imperial restoration had started up in earnest in the wake of her return.

Remembering a time when the Queen of Canada had visited her vast North American dominion when Caitlyn was a child, she gave the empress a curtsey. Seeing this, the servants nodded in approval; at least the visitor from Terra was trying to show proper respect to their liege lady. "I'm honoured to meet you as well, Your Majesty." She gave her an embarrassed smile. "I'm sorry to intrude on you like this, but when I arrived in K'ahuch, I was recognised by my relationship to Marina right away, then whisked up here on the express monorail. I have to confess, it's a very nice system you've got here; worlds different from the trains I used to ride with my parents in and out of Montréal when I was younger."

"Well, at least the good men of the Nakkuk-nekk'ek'a were kind enough to bring you to me as soon as you came," Nukyek said as she took Caitlyn's hand and walked her through Achnek Gate. They walked around the Achnek Hall towards the Sakk'eng House, the servants remaining several steps behind, within hearing range in case the Empress needed them, but staying back enough to allow her to converse with her guest in private.

Looking around, Caitlyn whistled in admiration at the opulent surroundings. "I have to admit, this place may not be as ritzy as I've heard Buckingham Palace or Windsor Castle are, but it's nice."

"Thank the architects working for the Muine Emperor when she was first built," Nukyek said as they walked into the House. "And the Maidens -- your cousins, as far as I understand from what I know of your current race -- for restoring the Palace to the way she was before the Urusians conquered this world."

Caitlyn nodded as they slipped off their shoes, they then entering the vast reception room to sit around a low table. Immediately, the servants went to work, they rushing into the nearby kitchen to prepare tea and snacks for the Empress and her guest. As soon as they were served, the half-dozen young women withdrew to one side of the room, they again remaining close but staying out of the way. Watching this, Caitlyn smirked as she moved to sip her tea. She blinked as the sharp taste of Noukiite sweet peppers touched her tongue. "Your local tea bites back, Your Majesty," she announced with a smirk.

Nukyek blinked, and then she laughed in embarrassment. Nearby, one of the servants blanched as she realised her error. "Oh, I'm sorry!" the empress apologized. "I didn't realise . . . "

"It's okay," the Canadian assured her. "There's a vegetable dish on New Avalon and Sagussa; it's called yanbe-chagh. It's similar to your it'k'i. One of the ingredients that go into it is not so different to what this tea's made out of. Great for clearing up the sinuses. Please, I don't mind."

"That's good," the empress stated.

"Venerable K'eit'rin! Forgive me, please . . .!"

Caitlyn looked to see one of the servants having approached to within a metre of the table, she moving to prostrate herself before the visiting Terran/Avalonian. "I said it was alright," she repeated herself before her eyebrow arched. "Have you ever had to serve anyone outside a Noukiite before?"

The servant took that in, and then she shook her head. "Um, no . . . "

"Then why beat yourself over the back with it?"

The poor girl felt her cheeks heat. Nukyek stared fondly at her, and then she sighed. "They do their best to help me, but things have changed when it comes to their part of the Ten Orders since last I lived in Yekk'eng-ak. I hope to change that, but that depends now on the Council of Sages."

Caitlyn nodded; she had been quick to see the black star tattoos of Naihu on all of her host's servants. "I've heard of them," she noted. "Guess you'll be waiting for a long time."

Both women exchanged a rueful laugh, and then Nukyek took a deep breath. "So, Caitlyn, what do you intend to do when you and Marina-yu come back together again?" she asked.

"I think we'll be making sure no one close to us gets any sleep the night we reunite," the Canadian replied, that making the empress laugh in delight and the servants all titter in embarrassment. "After all, nineteen years without my lover in my arms is a bit long to go without sex."

Nukyek stared wide-eyed at her. "You never . . .?"

A shake of the head. "I never believed she died, Your Majesty . . . "

"Please: Nukyek."

A laugh. "Okay, Nukyek." A sigh. "I never felt her die. And after I became an Avalonian, I could better sense the bonds that locked Marina on me when she recognised me. They were still there. Strained beyond belief because of that space-time thing you both were stuck in, but still there. As long as they were there, I wasn't going to betray them. Marina's been betrayed enough in her lifetime. I won't add to it."

A grateful nod. "My eternal thanks, Caitlyn. Marina-yu was always worried about what had happened to you after she was forced to flee Oyatsui for Gomiana, where this Nassur fellow later found her." Her eyebrow arched. "Is there any news of the man who, in his own way, brought your heart-mate to me?"

"He disappeared with his wife twelve years ago," the Canadian replied. "No one's sure if he's alive or dead, but news just came from Earth concerning their living spirits somehow possessing the mind of your daughter's adopted mother . . . " -- Caitlyn, like all on New Avalon and Sagussa, knew of Reiko's genetic ancestry -- "So that some animal named Skelad Lara could be stopped from destroying the Sagussans. So I'd personally say he's alive, but it's impossible to say where he is." She sighed. "Once I meet up with Marina-vayae again, I'll have to tell her that he never intended to take her back to his _mother_ . . .!" -- one could coat the whole of the grounds of Yekk'eng Palace with the scorn dripping from that one word -- "In the first place. Nassur's Vosian; he knows what happens to one of his kind when a recognition bond is shattered. Or at least, he should damn well know; his first wife, Cinba, was killed in a shuttle accident over Uru a year after Marina and I were forced to part."

"It's actually given a name as I recall . . . "

A nod. "The Bornai Fever. It's not seen by many Vosians as a disease, but it's often called that."

Nukyek took a deep breath. "So is Marina justified in seeking vengeance against this Nassur?"

"No," Caitlyn replied, and then she shrugged. "But get Marina to accept that!"

They laughed; Nukyek and Caitlyn both knew how stubborn Muzuka Marina could be when the mood struck her. "Nassur didn't come to Oyatsui to interview me personally until AFTER Marina disappeared," the Canadian added, a tired sigh escaping her. "It was then that he admitted he had just been willing to take her to Home Base -- that's his base of operations; it's an asteroid close to Sakusei Station near Shingetsu -- but he would have held off on moving her to Yehisril until he got all the facts concerning what Marina did to her father and why. If that happened, I'm sure Marina would've given him the story about what happened to me. Once that happened, it would have just been a simple hunt for . . . " Here, Caitlyn stopped as her lips began to tremble, and then she hissed between her teeth, "Gilpirko."

The empress grimaced. "I've heard of him. Marina was quite explicit when she told me what happened to you." Her eyes closed, she fighting the urge to let her tears flow so as to not appear to be insulting her guest. "Caitlyn, I've no words to describe how I felt when I heard what happened to you."

A shake of the head. "It's okay, Nukyek. Much that I haven't got any true satisfaction when it comes to justice, I've done my best to move beyond what happened to me." Her eyes narrowed. "However, I'm sure you'll agree with me on this: The chances are VERY good that Gilpirko hasn't, much less Wonsuna."

"In that, we are in total agreement. I've already requested to the Prime Minister that a 'terminate on sight with extreme prejudice' order concerning Gilpirko be issued to all the law enforcement agencies in the Dominion. I expect a reply on that this week." A sigh. "If I could, I'd put a considerable price on his head as well. Doing that would allow us to call upon independent warriors -- like this Shogai Dakejinzou I've heard so much about -- to scour the galaxy for Gilpirko. I'm sure that would roust him out sooner or later, so he can be dealt with. As for his mother, though . . . "

Caitlyn grimaced. "To believe Marina still loves her after all she did to her."

"Agreed. Filial piety is one thing, but this is beyond any sort of proper piety I would understand," Nukyek acknowledged with a tired nod. "Now, there comes one problem with your pending reunion with Marina: Where will you live. Personally, I would hope you'll both stay with me here at the Palace."

Caitlyn gaped. "In this place?"

"Of course. Marina's my pe'cha and you're her recognised mate. To deny either of you the right to stay with me would be wrong!" A wistful smile crossed her face as she added, "I'm even asking some of the good priests at Neyo-hu on ideas as to how we would perform your marriage ceremony."

Face-fault! "Hey! Wait a minute, Nukyek!" Caitlyn screeched as some of the retainers stifled their giggles. "Let me get back together with her before we start talking about a wedding, eh?!"

Nukyek howled with laughter -- which, to the retainers, was their permission to laugh out in the open. Seeing this, Caitlyn shook her head as she tried to rub her temple. Finally, after the empress had calmed down, the Canadian breathed out, "Nukyek, thank you for thinking about that concerning us! And yes, I'll take you up on an invite to do it here; we were originally planning to have a Galactic Justice of the Peace do our wedding since few planets in the Federation have religious ceremonies for same-sex unions." A deep breath. "However, I was hoping to take Marina to my home on New Avalon."

The empress stared at her. "Why?"

"Because of Gilpirko, of course. And whatever else Wonsuna might decide to send after us," Caitlyn replied. "I'm not sure if you understand all the interesting differences between people with a Sagussan genotype and other humanoid races in the local cluster, but there's something I now possess which will, should he every show up again, give me the upper hand this time." She tapped her temple over her right eye in emphasis. "My brainwave pattern right now is masked from a Vosian's tracking powers. All Sagussans and Avalonians do that after entering puberty. Reason why would take a long time to explain, but the core of it is this: in our minds, our brainwaves are SO intense, a Vosian's ability to track them would be overloaded. In effect, if I dropped my shields, I'd fry Gilpirko's brain out if he was close enough to me."

"And Marina, too," Nukyek warned.

A nod. "Yes, her too. Before I came here, I put in a special request to the Elder Mother, which is my right as a current citizen of New Avalon." A pause, and then she stated, "I have some of Marina's personal effects, many of which had samples of her DNA in them. With that . . . "

"You could have done to her what was done to yourself eight years ago."

"Exactly." A deep sigh. "It would have to happen. In the odd times a Vosian has moved to Sagussa -- or to New Avalon -- WITHOUT genetically becoming like us, that person suffered a near-fatal stroke every time he or she encountered someone who wasn't shielding her mind. Even if Marina and I come to live here, our being close together is just too much of a risk in MY eyes for her. I won't let what happened to me hurt her anymore, Nukyek. And for us to be bonded the Sagussan way, I have to ensure she becomes like me."

The empress nodded. "Your love for her shines like a sun, Caitlyn."

A blush. "Thank you."

"Kachsyo?"

One of the retainers -- the one who make the mistake about Caitlyn's tea -- perked, and then she moved over to kneel beside the table, she bowing respectfully to Nukyek. "What are your desires, My Empress?"

"Escort Caitlyn to Nungyek-nech. That will be hers and Marina's quarters from now on. See to it the quarters are properly prepared for them both. We may need extra staff for them as well."

"It will be as you desire, My Empress."

"Yekkeng?"

Another retainer came up, she kneeling beside Kachsyo. "What are your desires, My Empress?"

"Have dinner prepared . . .!"

A distant gong was heard. Hearing that, Kachsyo bowed once more to the empress. "Your pardon, My Empress, but may I proceed to see who desires your attention before seeing to the Venerable's needs?"

Caitlyn had already turned to gaze out the front door, her empathic senses reaching out. "It's the man who brought me here from the monorail station, Nukyek. I hope nothing's wrong."

"Go, Kachsyo," Nukyek bade her.

"Yes, My Empress."

She scurried out of the room. A moment later, she returned, a stern-looking man with a trimmed beard, he in the clothes of a modern government civil servant, following her. He lowered himself to one knee as he bowed his head. "Your Majesty, I humbly beg your pardon for intruding on your private time with the Venerable Lady Bryan, but I bear an urgent message just sent to you by the Venerable Admiral Ye-Yi."

"Lord Hekt'e, please be seated," Nukyek bade. As Eyu-It' Chusu-Hekt'e -- before the empress' return, he had been chief of the Cultural Properties Ministry staff assigned to watch over the Palace as a national historical park; these days, Nukyek was treating him as her own personal lord chamberlain -- shifted himself into a sitting position, she asked, "What message did the Venerable Lord Admiral send us, Lord Hekt'e?"

"He humbly begs your pardon for disturbing you, but he will be coming to the Palace as soon as he can arrange for transport from Nichsuo through T'uhach, Your Majesty," Hekt'e replied. "He will be coming with his adjutants, the Warrior-Lord Mendou Shuutarou of Terra and a woman my former co-workers at the Ministry . . . " -- in truth, he was still on the Ministry's payroll -- "Know of: the Noble Lady K'u-Koa Yesu-Oetan."

Caitlyn blinked. "Koa Oetan?! I've heard of her!"

"Who is she, Caitlyn?" Nukyek asked.

"She's a thief, Nukyek."

Stunned silence. The empress took a moment to fully absorb that, and then she stared in wide-eyed disbelief at Hekt'e. "Lord Hekt'e, I pray there's an explanation for this!"

He stifled back an embarrassed laugh. "The Venerable Caitlyn is quite correct about the Noble Lady Oetan, Your Majesty. But that is not the WHOLE story about her." He gazed on Caitlyn. "The Noble Lady Oetan is like the Robin Hood of your ancestral homeland on Terra called England, Venerable Caitlyn. Yes, she is a thief, but she has ALWAYS handed over artefacts originating from Noukiios that she finds outside the Dominion's territory to us through a trader in K'ahuch she normally deals with; he's a former ancient history teacher at King Muchach University." Back to Nukyek. "In her latest raid, Your Majesty -- on the so-called 'empress of the Eo' herself -- the Noble Lady recovered several seucheuchet' that were taken from the graves and memorials of several of our planet's most venerable leaders. Among them were the Venerable Admiral's own weapon, K'ut't'irak, plus the weapon of the Suhek Emperor himself, Kutit'kihap' Chacht'ap'!"

Nukyek blinked as she took that in, and then she seemed to deflate. Staring at her, Caitlyn was quick to sense the revulsion the empress felt at this revelation of grave-robbing -- not to mention the sheer disrespect Urusians, for the most part, seemed to demonstrate when it came to all things Noukiite. "Nukyek, would you want me to stay with you while you're waiting for Admiral Ye-Yi to see you?"

The empress stared at her for a moment, and then she sighed. "I came to value Marina's counsel in the time we spent together in the Yekk'ap', Caitlyn. I pray your counsel will be just as valuable."

"You'll always be my friend," the Canadian promised her.

* * *

Reiko's eyes opened.

The many smells of hers and Hicha's lovemaking -- to say anything of what Mina and Nek had done to each other at the same time; the two were currently asleep on a futon nearby -- immediately tickled her nose as she shifted so as to allow the cramp currently developing thanks to his head pressing on her arm to lessen. She wouldn't shift it totally away; the poor dear was finally asleep, he taking a chance to get over his jet lag and dream. No doubt of their living together and raising a family -- while she wasn't as powerful as Amora seemed to be developing when it came to empathy, Hicha's emotions were an open book to Reiko's senses -- until both were well into the twilight years of their lives.

Thinking of that, Reiko tried not to smirk as her free hand came over to tenderly comb through his hair over his ear. He seemed to shiver for a moment under that touch, his smile widening. Of course, he was still rock-hard where it counted, even after four -- yes, count them, FOUR! -- orgasms. Reiko never knew Oni men were able to keep it up and going when they were in their adolescence. Then again, was it really so surprising? Oni women -- especially ENGAGED Oni women (if Lum was any example) -- didn't think it wrong to toss away all desire for foreplay and move right to the main event as soon as the horns were tagged.

Closing her eyes as she shifted his face closer to one of her breasts, Reiko took a calming breath as she tried to will herself back to sleep. It had just come on her so suddenly. Not that she really didn't mind it, after all. But to switch from a nominally single status -- Reiko had only one boyfriend while she was in junior high and had dated around in high school -- to having BOTH a bond-mate AND two potential child-mates within her reach, ALL within a week's period, was a lot of absorb.

Even for her.

Still, she couldn't deny what she had been sensing. Mina wanted Reiko deep down because they had been friends for four years at the Girls Primary Academy before the former's parents broke up and she had been dragged off into a six-year nightmare of custody battles and shifting from home to home until she finally screamed "Enough!" and ran off to live her own life. As for Hicha and Nek, it was hard to say. K'yechsungi had stated -- the sin-eater being backed by one of the Men In Black, in fact! -- there was nothing to fear from either of them. As to HOW Hicha and Nek BOTH had started to dream of HER of all the women in the cosmos, no one could say yet. It would be investigated, of course; Reiko didn't think herself as being so foolish as to accept the two young men before learning if they were gift horses. And if indeed both of them were involved in something that might reflect badly on them, they deserved to find out what it was.

"Miss Reiko . . .?"

She blinked on hearing him whisper to her, and then she kissed his forehead. "What is it?"

Hicha looked up into her eyes. "Do you want to go for a walk?"

She stared at him, and then she nodded. Both of them slipped out of their futon, they quietly dressing so as to not disturb their other lovers. A moment later, they ascended the stairs into the living room. Before they could get into the genkan to slip on their shoes, a lady with glowing eyes peeked out from around the corner. "By the way, Rei, which one of you's the screamer? You or Mina?" Marina teased.

Reiko jolted, and then she growled at the hybrid before a smirk crossed her face. "I'm going to have to ask Caitlyn-san the same question about you when I get the chance to meet her," she teased back.

Marina started as her eyes returned to normal. Before she could say anything else, footsteps heralded Niap'yeng's descent from the upper floor. "People are trying to sleep," the priestess warned, she keeping her voice down. "Marina, I'm sure Amora wouldn't mind if you slept with her tonight."

Marina gave Niap'yeng a wary look. "In THAT junkyard she calls a room? Thanks but no thanks, Nia."

Reiko's eyebrow arched. "Is she okay, Nia?"

"She became intoxicated on the emotions all of you were projecting from the basement, P'ye," Niap'yeng replied. "Her powers are far greater than your parents suspect. She'll need professional training."

Reiko crossed her arms. "From who?"

"I was thinking of Chishiki Rogo."

Reiko's other eyebrow joined its sister in the rolls of her forehead. "She's a hunter, Nia. She's no different than Shogai Dakejinzou. How could someone like her possibly help Amora-chan?"

"Because she's also an Ehn priestess with her nation on Aimaiyu, P'ye," Niap'yeng replied. "She has experience dealing with people possessing special powers. Currently, she's spending time teaching the child of one of your mother's galactic middle school friends: Banchoo Ginger's daughter Luala."

Taking in that name, Reiko nodded. "I met her mother once when I was a kid. She was part of a pack of juvenile nereng who came to harass Mom and her friends every once in a while -- until Ginger's adopted sister Pepper got raped thanks to Schwartz and was made to become pregnant with her dead lover's child."

"How did THAT happen?!" Marina wondered.

"Really long story," Reiko mused, and then she took Hicha's hand in her own. "Shall we?"

"Hai!" the young man gushed.

With that, both headed outside. Niap'yeng and Marina watched them go, and then the latter stared at the former. "Nia, this is too good a set-up," she warned. "We need to find out where those two came from."

"Already keeping it in mind," the priestess said before she headed back upstairs.

* * *

Given it was still sometime before dawn would break over Tomobiki, Reiko decided to direct Hicha to a bathhouse owned by Zatsudan Ayako -- a close friend of the owner of Tampopo's Ramen and Beefbowl Bar, Kamekichi Tampopo -- so they could get themselves cleaned up before taking a morning stroll around town. Walking in to see that the bathhouse was open this early in the morning -- though Ayako was not present -- Reiko headed over to the counter. "Hey, Koharu-chan! Anyone in this place right now?!"

The girl standing there is tall and slender, she possessing long straight black hair (with elements of it wrapped around the back of her head, in a style Shinto shrine maidens often preferred) and twinkling bright auburn eyes, a very mature cant on her face for someone Reiko's age. She is dressed casually in jeans and a plaid button shirt. Gazing over at the Noukiite, she laughed in delight. "Hey, Reiko-chan! No, it's empty . . .!" Her voice dropped off on seeing the young man beside her former Girls High School classmate (and soon to be Young Women's Academy schoolmate). "What on Earth . . .?" she blurted out as her eyes trailed over Hicha's features, and then she stared at Reiko. "Is he one of your mom's cousins?!"

"Actually, no," Reiko replied. "He's striving to become my boyfriend."

Silence.

"'BOYFRIEND?!'" the other woman squealed, she almost vaulting herself over the counter to stare into Reiko's eyes. "Hel-LO!" she yodelled as she phantom-knocked on Reiko's forehead. "Earth to Reiko! Are you there?! Are you receiving me?! Are you sure you know what you're doing right now?!"

Reiko's arms crossed as she gave her classmate a grin. "And what exactly am I supposed to be doing with him, Koharu-chan?!" She then perked before looking apologetically at Hicha. "Oh, sorry! Hicha, this is my friend and high school classmate, Susumu Koharu. Koharu-chan, Hicha of Shingetsu."

Koharu blinked as the Noukiite did introductions, and then she put fists to hips. "REIKO!"

"Koharu-san, why are you bellowing out that uncouth alien's name?"

Reiko jolted, and then a tired moan escaped her. She turned just as the curtains closing off the front doorway from the outside parted, revealing a woman her age and height, she quite well endowed. Possessing black hair that was dyed a deep chestnut brown, her eyes were almost jet black. She was fashionably dressed despite her coming to a public bathhouse. Stopping on seeing who was standing there, her face twisted into a disapproving scowl. "Oh, good morning, Reiko-san," she greeted the Noukiite, the scorn in her voice quite apparent to everyone else present. "What are you doing in a sentou?"

"Good morning to you, Mirei," Reiko returned in an icy voice, and then she stared at Hicha. "This is another of my high school classmates, Hicha: Kuroda Mirei." She turned back to the newcomer. "So what're you doing here in Tomobiki, Mirei? Kodaira's _that_ way!" She pointed in the direction of the Tarouzakura hill; the neighbouring city of Kodaira was beyond that.

Mirei sniffed haughtily. "If you _must_ know, Reiko-san, Rosemary-san and Sofia-san invited me to a slumber party they were hosting for the other foreign exchange students who were moving from the Girls High School to the Young Women's Academy. I was just coming here to bathe and freshen up." She sneered at Reiko. "Though with _you_ here now, Reiko-san, I might be tempted to go elsewhere."

"Won't find anything else open in town this time of night, Mirei-san," Koharu warned.

"What a pity," Mirei breathed out before her eyes turned to focus on Hicha. "So who is . . .?"

Her voice trailed off as her eyes started to go wide as Hicha's bishoonen features seemed to rip past any emotional guard she might possess and aim directly for her heart -- and other places in her body as well. Reiko is quick to sense the burst of arousal within Mirei. Before she could move to defend Hicha from the storm she KNEW was coming, Mirei was already hugging him, mashing his face into her cleavage as she huskily exhaled over his horns. "Oh, what a CUTE boy!" she squealed out. "Hello, there! Welcome to Earth! What's your name?! I'm Kuroda Mirei! I'm so happy to meet you . . .!"

An inhuman shriek escaped Hicha as his body glowed with energy. Before Mirei could realise the danger, she was belted at point-blank range with a force bolt that seemed to burst from every point on his body closest to her. Mirei was blasted through the curtains to crash-land in the street beyond, her head slamming into a telephone pole. At the same time, Hicha had _teleported_ himself as far from where the awful woman had been standing. Reiko's and Koharu's heads snapped over to look at him -- and then both gaped before Koharu's cheeks started to redden. "Reiko?"

"Yeah, Koharu?"

"Is he really THAT big?!"

"He sure was when he was inside me."

Silence.

"NO WAY!" Koharu shrieked as she stared wide-eyed at her friend.

A sniff. "Miss Reiko . . .!"

Reiko and Koharu snapped over to see Hicha standing as still as a statue, his eyes awash in tears as a look of pure fright crossed his face. Without hesitation, the Noukiite walked over to gently embrace him, she whispering soothing words into his ears, her hands reaching up to stroke his hair around his horns. As he began to sob, Reiko gazed over at her friend. "We need some fresh clothes," the Noukiite mouthed.

Koharu nodded as she pulled up her cell-phone. "I'll calling the twins over to get that idiot outside towed back to their place first," she said as she hit the speed-dial for the Valens sisters. "Once she's gone, I'll get something for him. You get him inside the girl's side and wash him down."

"Thanks," Reiko called back, and then she looked down. "I'm taking you inside the bath. Okay?"

Hicha sniffled in her shoulder. "Sh-she t-tried to r-rape m-me, Miss R-r-Reiko . . .!"

"It's alright," Reiko vowed as she moved to guide Hicha through the doorway to the women's bathing area, she giving Koharu a grateful look before she turned her attention to her new lover.

Watching her go, Koharu tried not to chuckle as she waited for either Rosemary or Sofia to answer. She hoped she could control herself whenever one of the young Canadians came by to pick Mirei up. The natives of the eastern Ontario city of Kingston were as hooked on hearing all the interesting gossip concerning Moroboshi Reiko and her clique as everyone else attending any of the Ishinomaki Women's Schools.

_You better be ready for this one, Reiko-chan_, Koharu mused before the other end answered.

* * *

"Feeling better now?"

Hicha sniffed as Reiko's fingers worked their way through his hair, and then he nodded as he leaned back, allowing his head to rest in the cleavage of his lover's breasts. Reiko smiled as she allowed him to rest, she reaching down teasingly to stroke his body in all the right places to ensure he remained interested in her. "H-hai . . . " he mumbled as he reached down to gently grasp the flesh of her thighs. Both were seated on washing chairs at one of the stations close to the furo. "Who was that woman, Miss Reiko . . .?"

Reiko grinned. "Hicha, we just had sex with each other," she cooed into his ear. "Your feelings made it quite clear to me that you would gladly take me as your wife were I not a Sagussan and bound by their traditions when it comes to mates and family. I think you can stop calling me 'Miss Reiko' and make it a little more intimate between us. Does that sound okay?"

Hicha blinked as he considered that, and then he lightly smiled. "Alright, Reiko. I'll do that for you." Taking a deep breath, he relaxed as Reiko finished shampooing his hair, and then she sprayed him down. Once he was cleaned of suds, she started to work massaging his shoulders. "Who was she?" he asked again.

"A very ignorant and proud girl who's hated me for a long time now," she replied. "Mirei's been raised from birth to see herself as very special. Because of that, she didn't take it well when I proved to be more popular when she started attending the Women's Schools after we started junior high. Atop that, a couple years later, I stopped her trying to date someone I happened to care for very much because someone else I happened to care for wanted to be his girlfriend. Ever since that time, she's tried to put me down every chance she gets. It doesn't work since she doesn't have a clue as to how to really piss me off. And I think deep down, she realises that if she DOES piss me off, I can hurt her very bad." With that, she leaned over to gently hug him from behind, she fondling him as she allowed her bust to press into his back. "Now, would you mind my asking you something, Hicha? What did you do to her anyway?"

He thought about it for a moment, and then he shook his head; Reiko's ministrations were enjoyable though she wasn't driving him to distraction this time. "I don't know, Reiko. I just felt her breathe onto my horns -- it was the same way you did it to me when we made love -- but when it came from her, it felt so perverse. I was afraid she was going to start suckling them. And if she did that, she'd think she was engaged to me. I didn't want her, Reiko. I want you. And I . . . "

"You nearly blasted her into a coma."

Hicha gasped as Reiko calmly looked over to see a nude Susumu Koharu walk into the room, she holding her own toiletries in hand. "Who's manning the front door now, Koharu-chan?" the Noukiite asked.

"Aunt Ayako's here now," Koharu said as she took a place beside Reiko and her lover. Sensing Hicha turning to stare fearfully at her, Koharu smiled at him. "Hicha-kun, I won't do anything to try to break you and Reiko-chan up. I don't know the whole story about how you and Reiko-chan came together -- and believe me, Hicha-kun, there are going to be a LOT of people in Ishinomaki who will start asking questions when news of this gets out -- but none of us would ever dream of hurting Reiko-chan that way."

Hicha blinked as Koharu's calm voice soothed past his fear, and then he smiled. "You and Reiko shared a bed," he quietly mused as he reached up to hold one of Reiko's hands. "Didn't you, Miss Koharu?"

Quickly sensing the lack of accusation in his voice, Koharu smiled. "Yes, we did," she admitted as she fondly gazed on the Noukiite. "Reiko-chan and I dated several times while we were in high school. And with Reiko-chan, dates happen to include sex. At the time, I was wondering which way I wanted to swing. Reiko-chan helped answer that question for me. Because of that, I consider her a very close friend. And because she's my friend, I won't think of hurting her by taking her lover away from her. Okay?"

Hicha stared at her for a moment, and then he nodded before closing his eyes and allowing Reiko to go back to work on his shoulders. "By the way, Koharu-chan, you might as well make it 'lovers,'" the Noukiite noted. "He came with another boy who's just as cute and wanting to get his love machine inside me just as badly. Atop that, Mina-chan's back in my life again and she wants me as marei'cha something awful." Seeing confusion cross Koharu's face, Reiko added, "Fujisawa Minako. Remember her from the Girls Primary Academy?"

The other woman's jaw dropped. "Minako-chan?! No way! When did this happen?!"

"Dad and Mom arranged it after Mina-chan ran away from her dorkhead parents," Reiko replied.

"Really?" Koharu hummed, and then she blinked as something else Reiko said came back to her. "Wait a moment! Did you say there's ANOTHER boy who wants to be your boyfriend, too?! Who?!"

"My marei'cha."

Koharu's eyes locked on Hicha; he had been the one who admitted that. She stared wide-eyed at Reiko. Seeing her nod, Koharu moaned as she put her fists to hips again. "Reiko-chan, how in the name of the Buddha did you ever get to be THIS lucky in your lifetime?!" she demanded in a near-squeal.

The Noukiite lightly shrugged. "I don't know, Koharu. And to be honest with you, I just waiting now for the other shoe to drop on my head." She sighed. "That's scaring me."

A nod. "Smart girl."

* * *

After a long soak in the furo for all three -- where Koharu got the whole story as to how Mina had come back into the Noukiite's life, plus the details concerning Hicha and Nek -- they exited from the bath house. Hicha was wearing a set of jeans and a T-shirt provided to him by Koharu from her aunt's collection of old clothes. The three made their way towards the banks of the Tomobiki River where some yatai who stayed open overnight were located. Relaxing at one ramen stand -- it was the one where Ataru had introduced his daughter to the joys of the popular noodle dish, Reiko fondly remembered -- she called out, "Oba-chan! Three tonkotsu ramen, two of them with red pepper sauce, please?!"

The yatai owner looked up, and then she laughed on recognising the Noukiite. "Oh, Reiko-san! It's you! Hai, three tonkotsu ramen, two with red pepper sauce!" She waved them to stools attached to the yatai before she moved to get to work. "I recognise Koharu-san, but who's your other friend, Reiko-san?"

"I just moved here from Uru, Oba-san," Hicha replied.

"Can we expand that order, ma'am?"

The three snapped around to see Marina, Niap'yeng, Mina and Nek walk up to them, the hybrid's eyes glowing briefly. As Koharu leapt out of her chair to swamp Mina with an embrace as they started to catch up on their years apart, everyone sat down around the yatai. "Oba-chan, expand that to seven tonkotsu ramen, four with red pepper sauce," Reiko amended, and then she kissed Nek warmly on the cheek. "Good morning, Nek. We didn't mean to leave you two alone in the den, but your other lover wanted to go for a walk."

"Good morning to yourself, Miss Reiko," Nek huskily breathed back.

Mina walked over to embrace the Noukiite from behind, she leaning down to kiss one of the bulges on Reiko's forehead ridge. "We forgive you, Rei-chan," she said before she took her place to Reiko's right. "Lucky for us, Marina-san was able to track you two down through Hicha-kun."

"Is everyone else up?" Reiko asked.

"Your parents are," Niap'yeng answered. "Amora's still asleep. She might have to miss school today. I'll stay with her so I can test her abilities; Rogo would be interested in knowing these things."

"Who's Rogo?" Mina and Koharu asked in sync.

The priestess explained the history of the Aimaiyite hunter. The first of the ramen bowls were then produced. The ones augmented with red pepper were passed to the Noukiites and the Onis. Everyone moved to dig in -- after giving Niap'yeng the chance to properly bless the meal, of course. After everyone finished their ramen, Reiko drew out some money to pay for it. She and the yatai matron exchanged friendly bows before the group of teenagers headed off. As they headed back to the Moroboshi home, Marina asked, "How'd that old lady know you, Rei? You told me yesterday you've never really lived in this place."

"It was a couple of days before a certain ch'ekuo and her partners-in-crime tried to get me dragged back to Hakaech, Marina," Reiko replied. "Dad took me to that very yatai to let me try out some ramen; it was my first time. I didn't like it since I thought it tasted pretty flat, so I suggested it get spiced up. Oba-chan suggested I try some ramyoun instead since it always has red pepper paste put into it." She then giggled as something came back to her. "That was the time I also telekinetically beat up a part of jerks who were hassling Dad because of what happened in the Second Tag Race! This woman got herself stuck on top of a mushroom, the only thing she could eat being some nikuman she bought when she went shopping. Every time you mentioned nikuman to her after that, she freaked out. Her husband blamed Dad for it, then beat him up the day he met Nassur." She winked at them. "But I got them both back for it!"

Mina and Koharu laughed. Niap'yeng, Hicha and Nek all smirked. "I take it blaming your dad for weird shit happening was kinda the town-wide sport in this place back then, eh, Rei?" Marina mused.

"Hai, it was," Reiko replied, and then she sighed. "I still wish they lived up north."

"They'll be fine, P'ye," Niap'yeng assured her. "The lessons forced on these people by what happened to your father have not been forgotten. Yes, there are some holdouts, but they are few and far between."

"I really wish I could believe that, Nia . . . "

"Reiko-oneesan?!"

Reiko stopped, and then she turned to see a young man of eleven walking towards her from the direction of the Mendou mansion, he dressed in a white-and-black hakama. Flanking him were two watchful Kuromegane, their hands hovering close to their holsters under their jackets. He had a toy bokken in hand, he carrying it in the same position a samurai of old would carry his daishou. Marina, Mina and Niap'yeng were quick to note his physical resemblance to a certain commander in the United Nations Defence Force they knew of quite well. "Hey, Tetsubou-chan!" Reiko hailed as she kneeled to look Mendou Tetsubou right in the eye. "What are you doing up so early in the morning? It's nowhere close to time to go to school."

Both Kuromegane bowed respectfully to the Noukiite. "I'm going to kendou practice with Ashikaga-sensei at his doojou, Reiko-oneesan," Tetsubou replied, his cheeks reddening. "Ano, Onee-san . . .?"

Reiko's eyebrow arched. "What is it, Tetsubou-chan?"

"You're not going to your new school right now, are you?"

"No, not for a few days. Why?"

"W-well," Tetsubou stuttered before he took a deep breath, and then he bowed formally to her. "Reiko-oneesan, would you come to a party I'm going to have with my friends at the Tarouzakura tomorrow night? It's because of what happened when that evil woman kidnapped us all and tried to hurt Amora-san's mother."

Reiko blinked as she took that in, and then she smiled. While Tetsubou was, unfortunately, starting to develop some of the same habits his father had, he was trying his best to be honest and friendly with her. And Amora did like him, to a certain extent. "Well, I'll be happy to come down tomorrow, just as long as my friends can come down, too. I don't want to leave them out of it, after all."

"Sure!" Another bow. "Arigatou, Reiko-oneesan!"

With that, the young heir of the Mendou-Mizunokooji business empire was off, his bodyguards remaining close to him. The others watched him go, and then they stared at Reiko. "Rei-chan, I thought you once swore you'd NEVER set foot on any part of Mendou's estate! Especially AFTER that birthday party for Fujinami Ryuunosuke the dorks here tried to also pass off as your adoption party!" Mina noted. "Are you alright?"

Reiko blinked as she considered that, and then she sighed. "Ask me later, Mina."

* * *

"Sentry point to Hazel."

Hazel looked up from her meal on hearing that broadcast over the intercom. "What is it, Nisur?"

"Fukunokami air bike coming in right now, the rider asking permission to land," Nisur, one of the youngest hunters, reported. "Rider's name is Muzuka Hatashi; she's a representative from the Muzuka Clan."

Hazel took that in, and then she nodded. "Okay, let her land. I'll meet her in the bay."

"Hai!"

Disposing of her tray, the hunter made her way into the main hangar bay, she absently adjusting the kill-belt wrapped around her ballooning waist. Naosu had been starting to go after her to start losing the excess weight for some time. But after losing Sensei, Benten-sensei and poor Koishii-chan . . .!

"Yo!"

Hazel perked as an air bike roared through the force field keeping the hangar bay pressurized, and then she stopped as its driver swung around to land in front of her. The girl in question, who looked a couple years older than Benten had been when she vanished, dismounted, she walking over to her. "You're Hazel, right?" she asked as the hunter took her hand. "Muzuka Hatashi. The Clan Leader sent me here."

"Pleased to meet you, Hatashi-san. What's this all about?"

"It's about Marina."

Hazel blinked as she took that in, and then she waved Hatashi with her. "Come with me."

They headed into the meeting hall. Watching Hatashi, Hazel was quick to notice the considerable physical similarity between the young Fukunokami and the hybrid woman who presently held their interest. Of course, Hatashi didn't possess Oni horns, Yehisrite skin or Vosian ears, so it was safe to assume she wasn't directly descended from the people who sired either of Marina's parents. Like most Fukunokami women, Hatashi was dressed in a skimpy battle bikini, decked with silver-grey chains to mark her clan affiliation. She was blue-eyed and black-haired, the latter cut tomboy-short. There was a look of determination on her face, that mixed with genuine concern and worry. Had Hatashi known Marina before the latter disappeared?

Taking their seats, Hazel took a deep breath. "How can I help you today, Hatashi-san?"

Hatashi took a deep breath. "You've heard the news about what happened to Rina, didn't you?"

A nod. "Hai, we did. Speaking personally, I'm glad to hear Marina-san's alright."

"Good. That makes this simple, then," Hatashi curtly noted. "If you're planning something against Rina right now, Hazel, stop what you're doing and leave her alone."

Hazel's eyes widened. "That's a pretty strong request, Hatashi-san. Why make it?" Before Hatashi could answer, she then added, "Your clanswoman DID murder her father . . . "

"She killed that son-of-a-bitch defending her mother!" Hatashi cut her off as her hand slammed onto the table between them. "I don't know what Nassur left behind about that then he and Benten vanished, Hazel, but there're some things you better know right now. One: Rina was absolved of what she did by the Clan Leader before that fucked-up half-brother of hers showed up on Oyatsui to rape her fiancée. Two: Rina's grandparents on Yehisril never disowned her; she's still considered 'Marina of Dysos' there. It's her stinkin' brother Gilpirko they don't acknowledge anymore, not her. They knew it was a case of her defending her mother from an abusive, drunken monster. Three: The Empress of Noukiios herself has taken personal interest in this. She's made it VERY clear that any attempts at punishing Rina for what she had to do won't be taken lightly there. You want to have an Ip'ihu hunt-team on your ass?" Seeing Hazel shake her head, Hatashi smirked. "Great. Now, four: Rina's fiancée Caitlyn Bryan's an Avalonian now. You know how Avalonians and Sagussans frown on child abuse and spousal abuse, don't you?" Seeing the hunter nod, Hatashi nodded as she stood up. "Okay. That's all I needed to say to you. So what'll it be?"

Hazel seemed to think about it for a moment, and then she asked, "You willing to go to Earth?"

Hatashi jolted. "Eh?!"

"To see Marina-san again?" On seeing the visiting Fukunokami blink confusedly, Hazel smiled. "You just helped make a decision I've been moving to make since I first heard about your clanswoman."

Hatashi stared at her.

* * *

"This was the Venerable Huit'ch'uk's weapon . . . "

Silence fell over the main room of the Sakk'eng House as Nukyek stared forlornly at the eunuch's sword currently in her hand. Et'a Yekaechsuch-at', a weapon forged in the same millennium of history as such famous blades as K'ut't'irak and Kutit'kihap' Chacht'ap'. The "Virgin Blade," she had been nicknamed by those who had seen her before she was placed forever in the dark; the man who had forged her had done so after the one she had been meant for had passed away in 4275. The weapon that had never tasted the blood of anyone who might have desired to bring harm to her mistress, the Venerable Ye-Hit' Yeho-Huit'ch'uk.

Taking a deep breath, the empress gazed on Koa Oetan. "How is it possible, Noble Lady Oetan, this weapon was taken away from her mistress' tomb? Unlike people such as my esteemed predecessors, and myself the Venerable Huit'ch'uk was nothing more than a wonderful artist and calligrapher, a beloved wife to her husband and caring mother to the Most Venerable Yap'eng. I hardly comprehend the reason why anyone, even any of the so-called 'Imperial Houses' of Uru, would proceed to disturb her crypt to take this . . . " -- she held Yekaechsuch up in emphasis -- "So she could adorn some trophy room on another planet!"

Oetan bowed her head. "I wish I could give you an answer that could satisfy your curiosity, Your Majesty," she replied in an apologetic tone as she stared once more at her host. "I never even recognised her as one of the swords I found until the Venerable Admiral pointed her out to me."

Silence fell over the room as the empress took the chance to consider that, and then she shook her head before she stared once more at the thief before her. "Noble Lady Oetan?"

"Yes, Your Majesty?"

"We would desire to call upon your services in a more official manner than what you might have done for our people -- your father's people, as Lord Hekt'e has informed me while we awaited your coming to us -- in times past," Nukyek ordered, her voice's pitch altering enough to make the backs of everyone else in the room straighten automatically. This was no longer a lost woman trying to find her place in society again. This was an Empress -- and one who was very determined to do what was needed to see justice returned to her people. "You will be given letters of marque from us to carry out further missions such as the one that returned the Virgin Blade and her sisters into our possession." Her eyes narrowed. "And you will not stop, Noble Lady Oetan, until every last treasure that was stolen from our people has been found, on Uru and elsewhere, and then rightly returned to our Dominion. Do you understand our desire?"

Oetan felt a lump surge into her throat as Nukyek's eyes seemed to bore right into her soul. Taking a moment to find a way to return moisture to her lips, she noted, "It will take a while, Your Majesty . . . "

"As long as it is needed until it is done, Noble Lady Oetan," the empress sternly declared. "We will speak to the Prime Minister about this to ensure you receive whatever support the Nakkuk-nekk'ek'a can give you in your task." She stared at Eyu-It' Chusu-Hekt'e. "Whatever support your ministry once gave the Noble Lady Oetan must continue, Lord Hekt'e. We will no longer stand back and allow this raping of our world's treasures, the pillaging of our world's very own history, to go forward unchecked. Is this understood."

The Cultural Properties Ministry official bowed his head. "It is as you command, Your Majesty."

Nukyek nodded. "Please leave us," she bade. "I wish to speak to the Venerable Admiral alone."

With that, the servants moved to escort everyone save Ye-Yi Chusu-Hachhich out of the room. Once clear of the doors of the Sakk'eng House, two of the servants quickly closed them to ensure the empress and the admiral would be totally alone. Moving away from the other Noukiites to stand close to Caitlyn Bryan, Mendou Shuutarou took a deep breath. "Now I know how the Koreans feel about us," he mused aloud.

The Canadian gazed at him. "What do you mean?"

He returned her look. "Ms. Bryan, did any of your relatives fight in the Korean War?"

Caitlyn considered that for a moment, and then she nodded. "One of my uncles was a trooper with the Strathconas; he was killed near the end of the war close to the Imjin River. Why?"

The Japanese commander closed his eyes. "Before that war tore that country apart, my people -- my own family was involved, in fact -- did pretty much as Lum-san's people once did to Reiko-san's."

Her eyebrow arched knowingly. "Do you feel guilty about it?"

"Hai, though I confess that I never really sat back to consider what happened back then. Until now, that is." A deep sigh. "And that shames me even more, Ms. Bryan."

With that, he walked off. Caitlyn watched him go, an understanding nod touching her head.

* * *

"To allow her to become a privateer, My Empress . . . "

"I'm forcing her to fall back into the 'caste' her father tried to escape, you mean?"

Hachhich chuckled knowingly as he sat by the table. Nukyek was standing before one of the beautiful portraits of the emperors that had ruled Nehech. Of course, the portrait she was gazing on was that of the Takchyek Emperor, the man who had, because of his own lust for knowledge and science, driven his people beyond the comforting cradle of their world into the stars beyond. Honek's era was Noukiios' very own Age of Discovery, when explorers such as the intrepid Lord Nekseu, the Eunuch Spaceman, willingly went forth on the earliest warp-capable Dragon Ships to probe the star systems closest to Ch'uokyuk and see if intelligent life actually was out there. In fact, it was Lord Nekseu's explorations, under the direct patronage of the Takchyek Emperor, which revealed the existence of Okusei, Kurrusei and Tunchusei to the scholars of Nehech.

Gazing at Nukyek, the admiral sighed. The poor woman had never been born to be the ruler of Noukiios; she had married the man who inherited that position from his predecessor. But Fate had forced Nukyek into taking the Throne for herself. In effect, she was being made to acknowledge ancient laws of inheritance that granted the right for one's spouse to inherit one's title and property if there were no children to pass them on to. Such laws had not been followed when it came to inheriting the Throne of Muchach, though; from the earliest days of Ep'ye, Noukiios' heads-of-state had always been male, the leaders of the House of Euk -- and later, the House of Yi -- bending themselves backwards and inside-out at times to find a suitable male heir to succeed an emperor who had arrived at his time to face the judgement of the Ch'uoeuk at the Two Portals.

Lightly smiling, the empress turned back to gaze on her guest. "I'm challenging her, Admiral," she stated as she walked over to sit at the table before Hachhich. "I think I see what interested one of the Maidens in the Noble Lady Oetan. She has a great hunger deep in her heart and soul. A hunger that howls to be quenched as often as possible. Allowing her to do this for us will go far in doing just that."

"She will be alone, My Empress," the admiral stated. As a military man, he never liked the idea of ordering troops into battle without ensuring they had proper support, both logistical and moral. "Even if she does have the support of that warren of spies in that prison at Hech'uo-t'ach, she still . . . "

"She's not alone," the empress cut him off. "The Noble Lady has a pair of companions who will serve as her concubines -- and, I suspect, her willing partners in carrying out my wishes. After all, they were the blood-children of the 'empress of the Eo,' yet imprisoned in her own home to ensure they didn't cause their 'mother' distress. I'm sure they'll be willing to help the Noble Lady Oetan when she requires it."

His eyes widened. "Who told you . . .?"

"Caitlyn did."

"Ah!" With that, the admiral nodded towards Yekaechsuch. "What will you do with her?"

A deep breath. "Return her to her mistress' tomb. She deserves no less."

Hachhich considered that for a moment before he held up a finger to emphasise a point. "May I humbly suggest another course of action, My Empress? Something I'm sure the Venerable Huit'ch'uk herself would approve of were she still among us and not enjoying the gift of the Ch'uoeuk's Final Judgement."

Nukyek stared at him. "And that would be?"

"P'yeknu."

Silence fell over the room as the empress considered that.

* * *

"A party Tetsubou-chan's holding at the Tarouzakura?"

"Hai," Reiko replied before she held out a portion of dinner she made for Amora. "Say 'aah!'"

"Aaah!" the empath moaned before she took the sukiyaki into her mouth and munched on it.

"Hey, Amora!"

Amora looked up to see Marina standing at the doorway to her bedroom. "What is it, Onee-chan?"

"There's a classmate of yours at the front door. Girl named Seiteki. She's got your homework."

Amora grinned. "Send her up!"

Marina nodded, and then she headed out. Reiko sighed. "Amora-chan, the instant Dad gets home . . . "

"Seiteki-chan's just having fun, Onee-chan!" Amora scolded as she wagged her finger at Reiko. "After all, Dad did save her from those mean bikers when he got his teaching job here!"

Reiko rolled her eyes. A second later, a black-haired typhoon of energy ran into the room to swamp Amora with an embrace. "Hey, Amora-chan!" Ozuno Seiteki crowed. "Why weren'tcha at school?!"

"I got sick, Sei-chan," Amora replied as she hugged her best friend back. "How were things?"

"Oh, it was okay," the daughter of Ozuno Tsubame and Ozuno Sakura replied as she sat on the bed beside Amora, and then she stared at Reiko before she snorted. "Oh, it's Lump-Head again! What's she doing here?!"

Amora glared at her. "Sei-chan! She's my sister! Don't call her that!"

"What's with this one, Rei?"

Reiko turned as Marina walked into the room. "Oh, don't mind Kozue, Marina-san. She's just can't stand the fact that Dad's not the girl-chasing idiot her mother probably always described him as."

"Don't call me that!" Seiteki yelped.

"And why not, Kozue?" Niap'yeng asked as she joined the group in Amora's bedroom, with Mina, Hicha and Nek standing by the doorway. "It's a lovely name you possess."

"It's boring!" Seiteki moaned.

"Alright, then! We'll call you 'Te,'" Reiko proposed.

Confused blink. "What's that?!"

"That's how you say your given name in our language," Niap'yeng explained.

"What about 'Seiteki?!'"

"That's not a name," Reiko noted as she glared at Sakura's daughter. "It's an adjective. And I don't think it's one your mom approves of you using, Kozue."

"Don't call me that!"

"Okay, we'll just call you 'Te!'"

"Don't call me _that_!"

"Fine, it's Kozue!"

"Don't call me THAT!"

"Reiko-chan, what's SHE doing here?!"

Reiko looked over to see Lum standing beside her boyfriends. "Hi, Mom! If you can just hold on a moment, we're figure out what's going on! We're still debating on what to call her first!"

Lum laughed as she moved to head downstairs. "I'll be teaching Aiotoga in the back yard, Reiko-chan. Darling won't be home for a while yet. Make her leave before he gets home."

"She'll be gone, Mom," Reiko promised.

"I wanna stay and see Onii-chan!" Seiteki declared.

"You're delivering Amora-chan's homework and then you're going home, Kozue," Reiko stated.

"I WANNA SEE ONII-CHAN! AND DON'T CALL ME THAT!"

The sharp noise of a sword being partially drawn from her scabbard made Seiteki freeze in place. Everyone else found themselves staring at Marina, who had moved to draw Aeyek-hup'uk, her hand gently gripping the eunuch's blade's hilt. "You're gonna obey the mistress of the house, kiddo," the hybrid flatly announced as she glared Seiteki down. "And you're not gonna argue about it. Got me?"

"H-h-h-hai . . .!" Seiteki stammered fearfully, she trying not to wet herself at that icy look.

Amora moaned while the others tried not to laugh.

* * *

"So it is agreed, then?"

"It has been decided, child."

Hearing that, the woman nodded as she moved to follow the elder down the hallway past the largest meeting hall in Keuket' Fortress, located in one of the northern districts of Ryekkyuk. It was at this site, over five thousand years ago, the Ch'uoeuk -- during his mortal lifetime -- established the first worldwide ruling kingdom of Noukiios. Keuket' Fortress had been expanded, demolished, rebuilt and redesigned over the five millennia since Muchach's time, it finally being turned into the main base of the Council of Sages after the Muine Emperor established the Ep'ye Dynasty in the city of Uohek. Even during the Occupation, the Council had sat within these walls; the Urusians had been fooled during those dark years into thinking Keuket' to be a shrine instead of the base of a government organisation. An organisation that had planned the overthrow of the alien conquerors from the very instant the Kyaksai Emperor had been forced to abdicate.

"It was so fast," the young woman noted as she paused at the ramparts to gaze on the vast city beyond.

"It was quite simple in the end, child," the older man said as he stood beside her. "The inheritance laws have been set in stone for years. And we HAVE a copy of the Eukt'ach' Emperor's will. The government in Noukiyek recognises the fact that any decisions made by the Kyaksai Emperor under duress by the Urusians has never possessed legitimacy. AND the modern government was founded as a 'provisional' government after the Liberation; nothing they've decided since that time has changed that one simple fact."

She closed her eyes. "She'll hate it."

"Don't you mean you'll hate it, Atnu?"

The young woman perked, and then she breathed out. "If that is my fate in life, I accept it," she repeated the lament the Most Venerable Inuch'ech first uttered four millennia before when he began to teach his sermons on the theories of reincarnation, one of the cornerstones of the Noukiite faith.

"Well said. Now go summon your ship. One of the clerks just reported to me Her Majesty and the Venerable Admiral Ye-Yi have gone to Terra to see the Venerable P'yeknu and her adopted parents. We will relay the news to Her Majesty there, in the presence of the Euk Hichheksuch Seuchhoukhek himself." An approving nod tilted the old warrior's face. "A truly auspicious beginning for the new age of our people."

She nodded. "Alright."

The woman headed off. Watching her go, Eyu-K'ung Chuip'-Neksai took a deep breath before he passed a hand through his silver-grey hair, rubbing one of the ridgelines underneath that mass as he soothed the headache he suffered from time to time. They came to him whenever he had been forced to think of profound things, that starting after he got the disruptor shot that grazed his head when his then-intelligence chief, K'e-It' Chuch'a-Nuoya, tried to end his life (and effectively ending his presidency), not to mention murder several of his loyal bodyguards. It was only the quick thinking of a local doctor -- who had access to transportation to an advanced Zephyrite clinic on Magairu -- that spared Neksai his eventual meeting with the Ch'uoeuk at the Two Portals, plus set him on the road to the Keuket' Fortress.

Many Noukiites still questioned President K'u-It' Chusu-Ch'uonak's decision to allow Neksai to ascend to the Council in the first place. While Neksai had driven through the necessary reforms that helped Noukiios fully recover economically from the Urusian Occupation, he had done so under the umbrella of nearly draconian laws that earned him the rueful nickname of "Noukiios' Mikado" by outside observers. The current president himself had been a victim of Neksai's brutality; it was a special assassination team sent by the Nakkuk-nekk'ek'a -- run by Neksai's nephew-in-law, Eyu-It' Chusu-Nekrip' -- that chased him down on Elle, crippling the man in an attempt to forever silence his criticisms of the general's domestic policies.

Would some people view his supporting the restoration of the throne -- and thus, the abolition of the presidency -- as Neksai's revenge on his old opponent? Thinking that, the old general shook his head. No. The Council had been unanimous in its decision concerning Her Majesty's proper place in society. And the President himself had requested their decision be unanimous regardless of which way it fell; he HAD understood that technicality concerning the legal status of the Dominion's present government in a way most normal Noukiites could not. The people themselves would be educated when that announcement was made as soon as the empress herself was informed. Realising that, Neksai squared his shoulders and took a deep breath, his ears perking on hearing his young companion's footsteps. Turning to see her, he nodded.

"I trust your ship is ready to go, Venerable Atnu?"

"But of course," Ye-Nehek Yech'a-Atnu chirruped back as she slipped her arm around his.

* * *

Tomobiki glittered with evening lights a night later as a small fleet of limousines and people on foot made their way to the Tarouzakura Hill for Tetsubou's party. The vast domestic work force employed by the Mendou Clan on their ancestral home grounds had outdone themselves to ensure the Youngest Master's party in honour of his rescuer from Skelad Lara would go without a hitch. Some of the older ones remembered the time when they hosted the Young Master Shuutarou's classmates when Fujinami Ryuunosuke celebrated her birthday at the Tarouzakura back at the end of September 1983. That party -- converted at the suggestion of then-Princess Oyuki into a dual celebration of Moroboshi Ataru's adoption of Reiko -- turned into a total disaster when the Young Master teamed with his classmates to make it seem as if Lum and everyone else were snubbing her fiancé and his just-adopted daughter. That, thanks to behind-the-scenes work by Ataru's grandmother Nagaiwakai, resulted in the Third Tag Race and Lum's near-final expulsion from Earth.

It hopefully would not happen this time.

"Good evening, Mistress Reiko," the valet -- and full-time human parrot -- of the matriarch of the Mendou Clan hailed as he bowed formally to Reiko. Mendou Haruka herself sat on the back of an ox as they greeted everyone coming tonight. "You're looking truly lovely this evening. Is this Mistress Mina?"

"Hai, Grand-aunt Haruka, she is," Reiko answered, she gazing on Haruka as she gently grasped the latter's hand. "Still suffering from laryngitis?" she playfully asked.

Haruka hid her blush behind a folding fan. "Somewhat, Mistress Reiko," the valet admitted.

Reiko smiled at her and winked at him before she slipped her arm around Mina's and they headed onto the flat plateau surrounding the Tarouzakura, they followed by Hicha and Nek. Once there, all four paused as they took in the scenery around them. Niap'yeng, K'yechsungi and her sister Hanak'at' had proceeded Reiko and her lovers here. The priestess was currently examining the young cherry tree with the help of Megane Aisuru and Ozuno Sakura, while her two closest friends were relaxing on a blanket, they having joined Miyake Shinobu, her adopted daughter Junba and Amora. The empath jolted as Reiko approached her, her eyes glowing that pretty pink as she looked her way. "Reiko-oneechan!"

Reiko smirked as Amora ran over to hug her. "Hey, shrimp! Ouch! Go easy on my legs, huh?!"

Amora pouted. "Hi, Reiko-oneechan!" Junba called out as she walked over to join Amora, she then nodding at Mina and the two Onis. "Mina-san! Hicha-san! Nek-san! Isn't this such a neat place?"

"It is that, Miss Junba," Nek admitted as he walked up to slip an arm around Reiko's.

Amora quickly noted that, and then a wary look crossed her face as she looked once more at her sister. "Onee-chan, am I gonna feel funny again?" she timidly asked.

"Hopefully not, Amora-yu."

Everyone turned as Niap'yeng walked up. "What do you mean, Nia-neechan?" Amora asked.

The priestess went to one knee before the young empath. "That's going to be a little surprise," she promised. "Think of it as a special present to you from all of us for being such a good little sister to P'yeknu. Once the present comes to you, you won't ever 'feel funny' anymore whenever you feel P'yeknu express her love to Mina, Hicha and Nek -- much less your parents expressing their love to each other, not to mention young Junba's mother or the Elder Mother Noa." She pulled out a jewellery case to open it, it holding a simple pendant with an emerald on a base of silver. "And as a prelude to that, this is yours."

"What's that?" Mina asked.

Niap'yeng drew out the necklace to drape it around Amora's neck. "It's a special empathic blocking rune, Mina," she explained. "This will allow Amora to protect herself from any strong show of emotion until such time as Rogo comes to teach her how to use her powers better."

"Is Mom going to allow that?" Amora asked.

"She will!"

Heads turned as Lum (carrying Ataru) landed behind Reiko's party. "Hey, Mom!" Reiko called out as her parents stretched themselves. "You actually managed to call Chishiki-san?"

"No, but I called Ginger and asked to pass on a message to Rogo-san," Lum reported. "I'll get a call about Rogo-san coming to Earth sometime later this week; she has to ensure she isn't going to be called back to Aimaiyu for some reason or another. Atop that, she's not done with Luala-chan yet."

"She will come, Venerable," Niap'yeng promised.

"Is she nice, Onee-chan?"

Eyes locked on Amora. "She will be fine, Amora-yu," the priestess replied.

"ONII-CHAN!"

Ataru jolted on hearing Seiteki's shout, that making him freeze for the critical second he could have used to dodge her oncoming hug. Before Sakura's daughter could land on target, something GRABBED her in mid-air, which made her cry out in shock. "Onee-chan!" Amora yelled as she spun on Reiko . . .

Whose eyes were NOT glowing.

"I'm not doing anything," Reiko noted.

"I am, P'ye."

Eyes locked on the pair of people standing nearby, both dressed in formal Noukiite robes, the eyes of one glowing. Both had cheek tattoos marking them as one of the groups of Huhat'hu, the caste of city dwellers. Reiko knew both were of the specific sub-caste of professional entertainers, which included thespians, writers, visual artists -- and Noukiios' version of Japan's geisha. Quickly recognising the crimson-haired one (hers were the eyes that were glowing), Reiko laughed as she walked over to grasp the newcomer's hands. "Hu'jhogsuch-t'ach, Hekp'yuk! What are you doing here?!"

A snort escaped Hu-Hut' Yesu-Hekp'yuk, the former Subject 463 of the Lost Stars, as her glowing eyes reverted back to their normal blue-grey. Nearby, the floating Seiteki found herself NOT floating anymore, she smacking headfirst into the hard rock of the Tarouzakura terrace. "What do you think I'm doing here, P'ye?! I'm gonna be working here at the embassy as the protocol officer." She leaned over to kiss Reiko's cheeks. "Sorry I haven't had the chance to come visit you; I was busy getting settled into my apartment with Nich." She nodded towards her companion, she giving Reiko a knowing look.

Reiko nodded as she glanced over at Hekp'yuk's adopted sister, Hu-Hut' Yech'a-Nich, the former Subject 171. Nodding in understanding, Reiko walked over to gaze into Nich's bright blue eyes. The raven-haired woman blinked as she felt her sister Lost Star's gaze fall on her, and then she moved to tightly embrace the stuffed Noukiite bear she held in her arms, she ducking Reiko's gaze. Thanks to memories Reiko had scanned from K'yechsungi the day they mind-melded before their adventure to the Yekk'ap' began, the former knew the bear -- named "Et" by Nich -- contained a special series of charms and runes, similar to the one Niap'yeng just gave Amora. Given Nich's potential power level -- she was K'yechsungi's equal -- those charms were all that stood between a young woman with the emotional maturity of a child and many brain-dead bystanders.

"Et," Reiko addressed the bear. "Can P'yeknu give Nich a hug?"

The bear's head shifted slightly in a nod. With that, Reiko walked over to gently embrace Nich from the side. Watching this, Niap'yeng smiled; she had been the one who had created Et in the first place. "Wow!" Megane Shinpai called out; EVERYONE had seen that. "It's a magical teddy bear!"

"Cool!" Kakugari Kokishin gasped.

"Awesome!" Paama Omoshiroi and Chibi Rikoshugi chimed together.

"Mom, can I have one, too?!" Ron, the youngest daughter of Rei and Ran, asked her mother.

Ran's jaw was scraping the ground. While everyone else began to chat about Et, one person at the party had other things in mind. "ONII-CHAN!" Seiteki yodelled as she tried again to hug Ataru.

K'yechsungi's hand snared her by the blouse before she could make contact. "We think the Venerable One has no desire to submit himself to your childish attempts at seduction, Kozue," the sin-destroyer stated, her voice as frightfully neutral as always, before she shifted Seiteki around towards Hekp'yuk. "Here! She desires to become an ihuok, Hekp'yuk. We suggest you take her on as an apprentice."

"Really?" the escort trilled as she gave Sakura's daughter an appraising look, and then she hummed, a nod tilting her head. "She has much in the way of potential. Quite young, but we all started that way too. Okay, I'll take her." With that, her eyes glowed again as Seiteki was elevated from K'yechsungi's hand.

Seiteki wailed as Hekp'yuk towed her off towards another part of the terrace. Sakura, ever the protective mother despite her daughter's growing sexual desires -- and her passionate lust for Moroboshi Ataru thanks to his saving her life weeks before from the Nerima Toranotenshi Boosoozoku -- moved to chase the escort down so she could get Seiteki to safety. Niap'yeng's hand stayed her in place. "This actually might do your daughter good in the long term, Sakura," the priestess noted as the Shinto shrine maiden glared at her. "You were no different than she was when you were her age, remember?"

"That's the part I'm trying to save her from, Niap'yeng!" Sakura snarled.

"Hekp'yuk can assist you," Niap'yeng noted. "She's been trained by the best t'uotachk'a on Noukiios. She can give Kozue some needed insights as to where her passions are actually leading her, insights neither you, your friend . . . " -- here, she nodded at Ryooki Koosei, who had come to the party alongside his long-time girlfriend, Oyuki -- "And the Venerable Ataru never gained when you were Kozue's age."

"Doubt it'll work," Lum sourly noted.

* * *

Tetsubou soon arrived, followed by the remainder of his classmates from Onigakkou Elementary School and many of Reiko's former schoolmates from the Ishinomaki Girls High School (those of whom were moving on to the Young Women's Academy). Muzuka Marina had been escorted to the party by K'ech'chut'a Aya, Fujino Hiromi and Yuri, they also coming with two of Reiko's other very close friends, Koomei Hitomi and Yayoi Emiri. Of course, despite Ataru's attempts at calming them, Lum and Shinobu were acting quite distant when it came to Reiko's newest friend. Unseen by many of the crowd, Ran was trying not to snicker as she stole looks at Marina; she had got a call from Hazel earlier in the day concerning a possible visit to Tomobiki by the current leader of Nassur's Hunters. Of course, her twin sons Rin and Ren were too busy devouring a lot of the food laid out by the staff to notice. And Ron was trying her best to get a closer look at Et.

Much to the private amusement of the members of the old Tomobiki Gang who were present this evening, Kuroda Mirei caused a scene when she attempted to hug BOTH Hicha and Nek, she being stopped by Mina and a well-aimed skillet drawn out of mallet-space. "Hey, Ataru, has Reiko always had to put up to that girl?" Fujinami Ryuunosuke -- who had come with her husband Nagisa and daughter Dansei -- wondered.

"Ever since junior high school," Ataru replied. "After she decided she was going to do everything in her power to put Reiko-chan down, Mirei-chan tried to steal Reiko's first boyfriend, Yamazaki Akira."

"I didn't know Reiko HAD a boyfriend!" Paama Shitto noted.

"We've never really asked about her, Shitto," Chibi Urayamu reminded his friend.

Paama jolted, and then he nodded. "Yeah, that's true."

"Is she popular at the Women's Schools, Lum?" Paama Yasashii asked.

"Tcha, she is! Almost as popular as I was back at Tomobiki High!" the Oni proudly noted.

"Does she have her own set of 'bodyguards?'" Chibi Aijooa probed.

The old members of Lum's Bodyguards blushed. "Not that I'm aware of," Lum trilled out, and then she gazed curiously at Ataru. "What do you think, Darling?"

"Not that I'm . . .!"

His voice was cut off as the distant rumble of motorcycle engines echoed through the air, the noise originating from somewhere to the northeast. Eyes gazed on a nearby street, where a stream of lights seemed to flow between houses. "A bike gang?!" Shinobu wondered as she got to her feet. "Who could . . .?!"

"MISTRESS!"

Heads snapped around as a Kuromegane ran over to kneel before Mendou Haruka, who had been sitting on a blanket beside her grandson. "Report!" the valet barked out on his mistress' behalf.

"Mistress, sentries at the residence report spotting members of the Nerima Toranotenshi Boosoozoku, numbering about twenty, riding through the streets," the bodyguard stated.

Hearing the dread name of the Tiger Angels, Seiteki shrieked as she scrambled away from Hekp'yuk to hug Ataru, she burying her face into his chest. "Onii-chan, save me!" she wailed as Sakura ran over to try to comfort her. "They're gonna take me away and take nude pictures of me!"

"They're STILL around?!" Koosei demanded as he walked over to the edge of the terrace, one of his handy 100-tonne mallets appearing in his hand as he scouted the scene below. "I thought Ataru got rid of the last of those dorks the day he came for his job interview, Sakura!"

"So did I!" Sakura said as she held the wailing Seiteki.

"Guess the ones who went into hiding decided to come out and play," Shinobu hissed.

"So who are these jokers, anyway?"

Eyes locked on Marina, who had joined Koosei by the fence line, her hand resting on the gilded hilt of Aeyek-hup'uk. "Land bike gang, Marina-san," the vice-principal of Tomobiki High School stated as he gazed warmly on the hybrid; he knew Caitlyn Bryan from their shared time together on Ipraedos. "Affiliated to our local version of Gegranko and his ilk. Most of them are in jail now, but not all."

Marina took that in, and then she gazed on the scene below. The stream of bikers was swerving onto the ring road that went around the Tarouzakura hill. Gazing back at the crying Seiteki, who was being comforted by both Sakura and Hekp'yuk, the hybrid sighed. "Well, I personally came here to enjoy a party," she told Koosei as her hand moved to draw Aeyek from her scabbard. "So . . .!"

With a leap, she was airborne. Watching her go, K'yechsungi smirked, and then she morphed into her winged form to fly off after Marina. Many of Amora's and Tetsubou's classmates ooed and aahed on seeing that, and then Reiko sighed. "Oh, great! Just the thing we needed to end the night!"

A telekinetic boost sent her off, she followed by Hanak'at', Willow and Yuri. As more people scrambled to the edge of the terrace to watch the coming battle, Nich stood up. "Nich wants to play," she said in a squeaky voice, and then she walked over to place Et on the blanket beside Ron. "Ron-u will play with Et-u while Nich plays with the bad people," she said before she flew off after the others.

Hearing that, Hekp'yuk turned stark white before she screamed, "CHAI-YU! COME BACK HERE!"

"Why are you stopping her?!" Sakura demanded.

The crimson-haired Lost Star spun on the shrine maiden. "K'uk'e! You want them ALIVE, don't you?!"

And with that, she was off. "Oh, dear!" Oyuki breathed out as everyone turned to watch.

* * *

Cackling madly, Danma Ryuuji guided his souped-up machine down the street as he led the last of the Toranotenshi -- those who hadn't been sent off to jail thanks to the police or that punk teacher from one of the local high schools -- on a ride through the streets of their home turf. Beside him, one of his gang-mates carried the team's banner like the guidon of an American cavalry regiment from the Old West. On it was their mascot: a winged tiger with an angel's halo over the head. Behind them, the other members of the gang were using chains, baseball bats and World War Two-vintage swords to rip up anything that got in their way, from garbage cans to the odd car or truck. As lights went on in the houses, apartment blocks and small businesses they were passing, Ryuuji could only smirk. Stupid fools! Did they really think . . .?

"Hey, asshole!"

Ryuuji jolted on feeling something land on the seat behind him, and then he spun around to see a green-haired Oni girl in black leather sitting there, a devilish smirk on her face and a drawn alien sword held up in one hand. Before he could wonder what was going on, the girl flipped up and to her right, she twirling around so that the sword's sharp blade could plunge right into the hub of his back tire! Ryuuji screamed as the cut sheared off the whole assembly, throwing him off his seat and sending him skidding face-first into the tarmac. Around him, his mates moved to dodge around so they couldn't run over him, several then crashing into the stone and concrete fences of the properties bordering the street.

As Marina calmly floated over the tail-end members of the gang, she dropped to the ground. Several of the riders skidded to a halt, they revving their machines as they moved to charge. "You Oni bitch!" the one holding the team banner snarled as he pointed at her. "What the fuck did you just do?!"

"I'm breaking up your street race, shit-for-brains!" Marina calmly replied. "You're bugging all the neighbours and disturbing a party I'm at now!" Her eyes narrowed. "You gonna ride outta here nice and quiet or does my sword get to taste your blood?" Her eyes glowed briefly as K'yechsungi came into a hover position near her right shoulder. "Or do you give my friend the chance to eat your souls?"

The bikers were stunned speechless on seeing the winged Noukiite soul-eater. "Holy shit . . .!" one of them gasped as several started to shy away from their attackers. "What the fuck is THAT?!"

"She's my friend, the Bandit Slayer of Taktek," a new voice replied from BEHIND the Toranotenshi. "Hey, Hanak'at', mind telling these ch'ekuo how many bandits she's killed over the years?!"

Eyes snapped around to stare on four other Noukiite women standing some distance away, their bodies backlit by nearby streetlamps to keep their faces in shadow. Their eyes were glowing, the hands of one girl crackling with energy. "I'm not sure, P'ye," that one replied as she glanced on the pigtailed-haired one. "Chai-yu's never seen fit to tell me how many souls she's taken over the last decade or so."

"We have slain 2,728 such unworthies since we started to feed on souls in earnest."

Marina blinked as she turned to stare at K'yechsungi, a touch of admiration in her eyes. "Scales of Lady Silna, K'yech! That's a pretty impressive body-count you've racked up!" she noted.

"We have never minded such trivial matters, Marina," K'yechsungi calmly said before she gazed on the shivering Toranotenshi. "Now, do we taste twenty more souls this evening? Or do we allow Nich to play?" She hummed as a thoughtful look crossed her face. "We are undecided."

"Nich says they're monkeys. Nich likes monkeys."

As soon as Hekp'yuk's adopted sister -- like K'yechsungi, Nich was an orphan -- said that, Ryuuji dropped into a crouch as a hooting sound started to escape him, his face deforming into a caricature of a chimpanzee. A second later, the other Toranotenshi began to grunt, ook and ack as they started to scratch the sides of their bodies, they crouching on their haunches just like their leader was doing right now. By the time a small troupe of police cars had come onto the scene, they disgorging their drivers and partners, Marina had already moved in to hack away at their fallen bikes' engines to ensure they could not be used anymore. Hanak'at' walked over to take up the gang's banner, and then with a blast of energy, she disintegrated it. Reiko and Hekp'yuk also headed over so they could make use of their powers to help the local constabulary take the bikers into custody. As soon as she finished ripping up the last of the bikes with Aeyek, Marina walked over to stand once more beside K'yechsungi. A disappointed look is on the sin-destroyer's face, one the hybrid was quick to notice. "Maybe next time, K'yech."

"We hope so," K'yechsungi noted.

"Nich is sorry."

They turned to see Nich standing nearby. "Why do you apologise, Nich?" K'yechsungi asked.

Nich gave her an impish smile. "Nich was afraid K'yech would get a tummy-ache."

With that, the childlike Lost Star soared off back towards the Tarouzakura. "Cute kid," Marina noted.

* * *

A couple hours later -- after the police got statements from witnesses -- the party was moving to wind down. As the staff moved to clean up the area and members of Tetsubou's class were parting from Reiko and her friends, Ataru was quick to notice Ran looking quite agitated. Quickly noticing the rose-haired Seishin woman's eyes were locked on Marina, he blinked before a tired sigh escaped him. Squaring his shoulders, he walked over to stand beside Lum and Shinobu. "Girls!" he called out.

Both jolted, and then they turned to stare at him. "What is it, Darling?!" Lum asked.

"Don't you think you can relax now when it comes to Marina-chan?" he asked, crossing his arms.

Panic crossed their faces. "Ataru . . .!" Shinobu whined.

He leaned up to them. "Has she done ANYTHING concerning Aiotoga?" he asked in a hiss.

Shinobu paled, her eyes flicking over to Junba. Her adopted daughter was too busy chatting with Dansei and Amora to have overheard her mother's bond-mate speak of her. She glared at Ataru. _Ataru, you KNOW what that woman did to her father . . .!_ she telepathically transmitted out.

_Yes, I DO know what she did!_ he transmitted back. _And if you both took the chance to use your empathy, you would've noted that she wishes every day that she never had to do THAT to him._

_But Darling . . .!_ Lum protested.

_Lum, if you know about Marina-chan, you know about her fiancée, too. Didn't Nassur tell you that?_

Both women blinked -- and then everyone jolted on feeling another mind touch theirs. _Give them a little time, Mr. Moroboshi_, a voice with a slight Québécois English accent then mused as a transporter beam flared into life close to the Tarouzakura itself. _Now, if you'll both excuse me . . . _

Everyone turned to see a blonde, blue-eyed woman in traveller's clothes walk past them, she headed for Marina. The hybrid was standing at the edge of the terrace, she gazing absently on the starry night over Tomobiki. Before she could sense the person behind her, hands came up to cover her eyes. "HEY!" Marina screamed out as she spun around, her hand snapping for Aeyek's hilt. "Who the fu- . . .?!"

Her voice screeched to a halt as her eyes took in the beautiful features of the woman who had stolen her heart two decades before. "MARINA MUZUKA!" Caitlyn scolded. "There ARE children present!"

Marina blinked several times as her mind threatened to crash on seeing her fiancée for the first time in so long -- not to mention seeing her whole and healthy! -- and then her eyes misted as she lunged over to grab Caitlyn in a tight embrace, she boosting them both into the air. "**_CAITY!_**"

Watching this from below, Reiko smiled before she sensed Amora's hand slip in her own. "Who is that, Onee-chan?" the younger girl asked as the Noukiite turned to gaze on her.

"Oh, it's just Marina-san's fiancée, Amora-chan," Reiko answered. "Don't mind them."

Everyone jolted on hearing a louder transporter beam echo from close to the Tarouzakura; Caitlyn had beamed in using the transporter of Koa Oetan's ship, which had come with the _Odyssey_ from Noukiios so the Canadian could surprise her fiancée. As soon as the beams vanished, Ataru blinked on recognising one woman in a green sleeveless bodysuit. "Hazel-chan!" he called out as he walked over to gently grasp Hazel's hand, he noting the hunter was currently accompanying Reiko's genetic parents, her father's three lovers, Mendou Shuutarou and a Fukunokami woman looking distantly like Marina. "What are you doing here?!" He indicated Nukyek and Hachhich. "And what are you doing with everyone else? Something wrong?!"

"No, Sempai!" Hazel replied with an embarrassed laugh, and then she indicated Muzuka Hatashi with a wave of her hand. "Hatashi-san here wanted to come down to see if her clanswoman was alright and I had to come here anyway." She grinned at the Noukiite empress. "We crossed paths with Her Majesty, the Admiral and their friends just outside Pluto's orbit and they offered us a lift in on their ship!"

"It's a very good thing Marina would also get the chance to reunite with her family as well as her heart-mate," Nukyek added before she gazed fondly on Ataru. "A thousand humble pardons, Venerable, but wherever is P'yeknu? Did we come at a bad time?" She looked around. "Was there a party here just now?"

"A party Shuutarou's son threw on Reiko's behalf, ma'am," Ataru answered as he indicated Mendou. "Tetsubou-chan wanted to thank her publicly for her saving his life and his classmates' lives from a woman I think you've been told about: Skelad Lara. The party was winding down when Caitlyn-san came by to reunite with Marina-chan." With that, he glanced up towards the hybrid in question.

Marina had, by then, floated back down to the ground, her arm wrapped tenderly around Caitlyn's waist. Her eyes were locked on Hatashi. "Tash . . .?" she whispered. "Is that really you . . .?"

Hatashi's cheeks were reddening. "Yeah, Rina, it's me . . . "

With a squeal, she lunged forward to swamp Marina with an embrace. Caitlyn backed off, she moving to stand close to Ataru and Nukyek. "She was just a baby when Marina stayed with her parents briefly before she met me on Oyatsui," she explained to the empress. "After we got separated and before I moved to New Avalon, she always came to visit me at the shelter. She couldn't adopt me since Marina and I hadn't done the clan-sister bonding, but she made it quite clear I was part of the family."

"Well, at least she'll have family she can rely on more now that she'll be living with you at the Palace, My Empress," Hachhich noted with a raised finger.

"Quite correct, Admiral."

Hearing THAT, Ran -- who had drifted over to keep an ear on the conversation that started up once Hazel and her companions arrived -- jolted before she walked around the crowd to get close to the hunter in question. Grabbing her by the arm, she dragged her over to the other side of the Tarouzakura from Marina. "What are you DOING, you idiot?!" she hissed as Hazel sent her a look. "Don't you know who that is?!" She pointed at Marina, who was still chatting with Hatashi. "Why aren't you arresting her?!"

"Ran-chan? What are you doing?!"

Ran yelped, she spinning around to see Ataru standing behind her, a curious look on his face, his hands clasped behind his back. "Darling!" she cried. "Don't sneak up on me like that!"

Ataru sighed; it only had taken him one quick empathic scan to see what Lum's friend had been trying to instigate. "Ran, this isn't going to work," he warned with a shake of his head, and then he stared knowingly at Hazel. "Isn't that right, Hazel-chan?" he asked as other people came up to them.

"That's right, Sempai," Hazel replied with a smile before she stared at Ran. "After all, Ran-san, I simply CAN'T arrest someone who hasn't been accused of a crime."

"**_WHAT?!_**" Ran shrieked. "Are you stupid, you Ipraedies . . .!"

An elbow smashed Ran face-first into the ground. "Ooops!" Reiko gasped in mock-horror before she gazed knowingly at Hazel. "I'm SO sorry, Aunt Ran! My elbow didn't see you standing there!"

Ran moaned. Ataru's eyes rolled. Hazel laughed, and then she turned to see Marina standing behind her, Caitlyn and Hatashi flanking her. Bracing herself, the hunter bowed formally to her. "Hisri'hilm, Lady Marina of Dysos," she greeted her. "I am Kuriinba of Kyotos, leader of Nassur's Hunters of Home Base."

Marina's eyebrow arched, and then she calmly placed a hand on Aeyek's hilt. "Hisri'hilm, Kuriinba of Kyotos," she greeted her in turn, her tone politely neutral. "I've been told by my new friend, the Lady Moroboshi Reiko of Sagussa, your leader's been missing for some time now. What is it you want?"

Hazel stared hopefully at her. "To apologise to you on my leader's -- my step-father's -- behalf."

Silence.

"**_WHAT?!_**" Ran shrieked again, she bolting to her feet as she glared at Hazel.

Reiko's elbow sent her down yet again. "'Apologise?'" Marina repeated. "For what?"

"For not explaining to you what he really intended to do when he found you on Gomiana," Hazel replied. "When he tracked you down in Niouto, my step-father didn't know the story of what happened to your fiancée at the hands of your disowned half-brother Gilpirko in the wake of you being forced to defend your mother's life by killing your father. He intended to take you NOT to Dysos to face your mother . . . but to Home Base so he could take an opportunity to understand your whole situation." A sigh. "His silence concerning his plans to you no doubt made you believe you had no choice but to take any chance to flee his grasp. Doing so, of course, led you to fall into the Dragon's Fire and meet the T'yekhek Empress, the mother of your friend, the Lady Reiko. According to my step-father's notes, Lady Marina . . . "

"Enough!"

Hazel fell silent. Marina took a deep breath, and then she stared at her. "I cannot accept your apology, Kuriinba of Kyotos," she stated. "I will only hear it from Nassur himself."

With that, she turned and walked away. Hazel remained in place, and then she perked as Marina stopped, she gazing over her shoulder at her. "By the way, Kuriinba: you better lose some weight. I can't fuckin' believe Nassur would want ANYONE working for him to be as out of shape as you are!"

Hazel jerked. As Marina walked off to rejoin Nukyek, Caitlyn watched her go, and then she stared at the hunter from Home Base. "Relax, Hazel," she said as she reached over to squeeze the younger girl's shoulder in support. "You did what you felt you had to do. Believe it or not, Marina respects that."

"Still . . . "

A wink. "Let me work on her a bit, okay?"

Hazel looked at her, and then she nodded, a grateful smile crossing her face. Caitlyn headed off to join her fiancée. "Oh, Hazel-chan, by the way," Reiko spoke up. "Who told you Marina-san was here?"

The hunter stared knowingly at the Lost Star. "Who do you think, Reiko-chan?"

Reiko blinked, and then she sighed as she glared at the dazed Ran. "Baka k'uk'e ch'ekuo!" she spat out as she stomped on Ran's head as she headed over to join Marina and her fiancée.

"Much that I do like you, Ran-chan," Ataru noted. "You DEFINITELY deserved that!"

Ran moaned.

* * *

"You must learn to forgive, Marina-yu."

Marina perked, and then she gazed on Nukyek. Taking a deep breath, she turned to stare at the cityscape beyond the Tarouzakura hill. "I know, Nukyek. I know. She meant good, but still . . . "

"You won't be satisfied until you hear it from him, right?" Caitlyn asked.

"Yeah . . . "

"Is she normally this stubborn, Mama?"

Eyes locked on Reiko. "She sometimes is worse, P'yeknu," Nukyek noted.

"'Mama' . . .?!"

They spun to gaze on a wide-eyed Amora. "Amora-chan?" Reiko asked. "You okay?!"

The empath blinked, and then she pointed at the empress. "Onee-chan, is she REALLY . . .?!"

"In a sense of the term, young lady, I am," Nukyek answered.

Silence.

"My sister's the daughter of Noukiios' Empress . . .?" Amora wondered, and then she squealed. "COOL!"

"Is it true, Onee-chan?!" Junba, who had overheard everything from nearby (as did Dansei and Seiteki), asked as they walked over to join their classmate. "She's really your mom?!"

"Well, she's one of my mothers, Aiotoga," Reiko explained. "It's a long story."

"How can you have more than one mom, Onee-chan?" Dansei wondered.

"Onee-chan's a bioroid, Dansei-chan," Amora answered.

"Like an Avalonian?" Seiteki asked.

"Yep!"

More of the younger ones' classmates had come over to join them. "Um, Your Majesty?" Tetsubou asked as he bowed formally to Nukyek. "Does this mean that Reiko-oneesan will be a crown princess?"

"Well . . .!"

"She can be, young man," a strange voice answered. "IF her noble father will allow it, of course."

Eyes snapped over. "General Eyu-K'ung!" Reiko gasped on recognising him.

"Elder Neksai! What are you doing here?!" Niap'yeng asked as the other Lost Stars joined them.

"That's what I'd like to know, too!" Ataru noted as he walked up to stand beside his daughters, he nodding a greeting to the retired president. "It's been quite a while, sir. What brings you to Earth?!"

Nukyek gazed at him. "You know each other, Venerable?"

"Hai, ma'am. When I was on Magairu once, I met him; he was in exile at the time," Ataru explained.

"It indeed is good to see you again, sir," Neksai stated as he nodded to the Daite'cha of Sagussa, and then he took a breath. "And it is also fortuitous that you're here to witness this." He drew a rolled parchment from under his cloak, it wrapped in a ribbon with an emerald clasp bearing the sigil of the Council of Sages on it. Going to one knee before Nukyek, he handed it to her with both hands. "My Empress."

Nukyek blinked, and then she froze as the possible reason for one of the Council of Sages to present himself this way -- to address her like THAT -- and to do that in front of the Euk Hisehek himself . . .!

Reaching over, Reiko took the scroll from Neksai, and then she snapped the clasp so she could unroll it. Reading the beautifully scripted words there, she blinked as the message contained on the parchment sank into her mind, and then she stared at the older woman standing beside her.

The woman who was now her ancestral people's head-of-state in fact as well as name.

"Mama . . .?"

Nukyek blinked as she tried to absorb what she had just been told, and then she started to sway. In the blink of an eye, Marina was right at her side, her hand holding Nukyek up. "Whoa, girl!" the hybrid hissed. "It ain't gonna look good if you pass out after being handed your husband's crown, you know!"

The empress jolted, and then she stared wide-eyed at her pe'cha before she turned to gaze on the other people standing around her. Ataru had a sympathetic look on his face. Reiko was worried. Caitlyn was giving her a supportive smile. Amora and her classmates were hushed silent. And the other Noukiites were now on one knee, they bowing their heads towards her as they crossed their right hands over their hearts in salute to their liege lady. Even Et, on the ground beside Nich, was bowing to her.

Realising there was no going back, the Muine T'yekhek Empress of Noukiios squared her shoulders.

"If that is my fate in life, I accept it."

_**To Be Continued . . .!**_

**

* * *

WRITER'S NOTES:**

1) This story takes place a week after _The Dragon's Breath_.

2) Terms and translations:

**Oniboshi** . . . Uru's primary star, a Class F0I white-yellow sun.

**flitter** . . . Ground vehicle with low-level atmospheric flight capability.

**-vayae** . . . Literally, "my beloved." Sagussan/Avalonian name-suffix used for one's bond-mate.

**tenth-day** . . . Literally one-tenth of a solar day. The Sagussan tenth-day is equal to 2 hours, 5 minutes and 24 seconds Earth-time. The Avalonian equivalent is roughly similar.

**Dowe'on** . . . Literally, "guardians of the stars." The non-xenophobic elements of Ipraedies society. Their opposite numbers are known as the **Asan'on** (literally, "guardians of the home").

**Gomiana** . . . A planet located to the spinward side of Earth and Neptune's solar system. Member of the Galactic Federation, but it has no colony planets. An effectively lawless society, Gomiana is one of the favoured stomping grounds of independent bounty hunters such as Nassur and Shogai Dakejinzou. Niouto is its capital city; it's built on two separate levels divided by an escarpment.

**Sagurei** . . . Literally, "child of Sagussa." Sagussa's Class A moon, about the same size as Luna, orbiting at roughly the same distance from Sagussa itself as Luna does from Earth. The regeneration matrix, by which the Daishi'cha were all restored to life, is found in Sagurei's upper mantle.

**Cha'than** . . . A race of female bioroids created five million years ago by a race of cyborgs known today as the Kurosans, believed to be the creators of the Planet of Shadows (see the TSY stories _Nassur's Story_, _Be Forever Nassur_ and _Stage Zero_). I modelled them after the Iczers from the Hirano Toshihiro series.

**HUD** . . . Head's Up Display.

**K'ahuch** . . . Noukiios' second-largest city, located on the southeast corner of the southern continent. Traditionally seen as the primary gateway for aliens coming onto the planet; it has a very larger foreigner's ghetto downtown. Because of this, most other races' embassies (save for some notable exceptions) are located here; no foreign legation can, by tradition, be located in either Noukiyek or Ryekkyuk. Nakkuk is a district located in the central part of the city; the name itself actually translates as "city centre."

**mesosphere** . . . The part of Earth's atmosphere ranging from 50-80 kilometres (31-50 miles) above sea level. It is the part of the atmosphere that can't be reached by normal ground-based aircraft, yet lies below the average orbital altitudes of satellites. Because of this, it's often nicknamed the "ignorosphere" since little in the ways of scientific studies have been done concerning this part of Earth's environment.

**Pizalna** . . . The Yehisrite goddess of home, marriage and the family, second only to the Three-Faced One (the god of death) in social stature within the ancient pantheon of that world. "Lady Pizalna's Fleece Laces" is one of the most common oaths uttered by Yehisrites.

**Tomobiki-chuuou** . . . Central Tomobiki. In the way I imagine Tomobiki, this station would be located on the Seibu Ikebukuro line, halfway between Hooya and Hibarigaoka stations.

**ch'ekuo** . . . Literally "dung heap dog," the most vile insult Noukiites use.

**trench-wave** . . . Standard Vosian insult towards people they don't respect. It literally means one's brainwaves (which most Vosians can sense to one degree or another) are too "low" to be worthy of notice.

**ch'ehek** . . . Noukiite title for one of its colony worlds; it literally means "province-planet."

**Hech'uo-t'ach** . . . Literally "Great Western Gate." A prison located in Noukiyek, west of downtown, close to the site of the western gate of the old walled city. Used as a special detention centre for Noukiite rebels against the Urusian Occupation. After the Occupation, it was taken over by native authorities, remaining as a prison to this day. Hech'uo-t'ach also doubles as the headquarters of the Central Intelligence Agency.

**kimch'i tchigae** . . . A spicy, stew-like version of Korea's most popular vegetable dish.

**T'a-Eue** . . . The variation of the classical civil servant's examination (**Eue**) written by would-be military officers. For people like Hachhich, Pin, Sen and Uin, it contained not only a written exam (including a poem), but also demonstration of classical weapons use such as swordsmanship and archery.

**Eta-jima** . . . The island close to Hiroshima which currently serves as the site of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Forces' officer's candidate school. It was the site of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy, alma mater of such famous leaders as Yamamoto Isoroku (Class of 1904) and Nagumo Chuuichi (Class of 1908).

**K'ut't'irak** . . . Breeze of Evening.

**shaku** . . . Length of measurement in old Japan, equivalent to 30.3 centimetres (11.93 inches).

**Hichheksuch-t'ach** . . . Literally, "Heaven's Gate." The most common oath used by Noukiites. The phrase is often pronounced by its Ryekkyuk dialect pronunciation, **Hu'jhogsuch-t'ach**. The Lost Stars, thanks to their considerable mental programming, always utter this oath in the Ryekkyuk dialect.

**Kutit'kihap' Chacht'ap'** . . . Tears of the Morning Dew.

**Tomobiki-nishi** . . . West Tomobiki.

**Tomobiki-higashi** . . . East Tomobiki.

**nicha** . . . The Vosian ceremony which allowed the survivor of a shattered recognition bond to emotionally expunge his/her grief at the loss so s/he could proceed forth to seek out a new mate. See the TSY main story _Final Cinba_ and the Tales of the Daishi'cha story _Lufy's Quest_ to see what I mean.

**sirmir'mhifif** . . . Yehisrite term indicative that the one so marked has been banished from his/her birth family. Yukio's mother Nakanba was declared as such by Varanko. See _Ancient Ties_ to learn the full story.

**it'k'i** . . . Vegetables fermented in a mixture of sweet pepper sauce and seafood.

**-nech** . . . Name suffix for a meeting hall.

**T'uhach** . . . A large industrial city northwest of Nichsuo. The inland body of water (an arm of the Great Southern Ocean) Nichsuo actually sits on is called **T'uhach-t'uch** (T'uhach Bay).

**nereng** . . . Term for a member of a crime cartel on Noukiios; it can also be used to implicate any type of criminal who works as part of a team (much like Pepper, Sugar and Ginger wanted to do in their youth).

**ramyoun** . . . Korean way of saying "ramen."

**daishou** . . . Literally, "large and small." The combination of katana and wakizashi normally carried by a wealthy samurai in the period before the Meiji Restoration.

**Et'a Yekaechsuch-at'** . . . Mother's Eternal Dream.

**Strathconas** . . . Officially **Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians)**. The second senior cavalry regiment of the Canadian Army, currently serving as part of the 1st Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group in the Edmonton Garrison, Alberta. Formed in 1900, the Regiment fought in the Boer War, both World Wars and Korea, plus has served on United Nations and NATO missions in Cyprus, Kosovo and Afghanistan.

**Uohek** . . . City on the southern coast of Noukiios' northern continent, located just across the Central Sea from the northern suburbs of Noukiyek. During the Ep'ye Dynasty, it was called **Hekch'e**.

**Et** . . . Flower.

**ihuok** . . . Literally, "prostitute." People like Hekp'yuk are, these days, trained in many things beyond sexual intercourse, so they often use the term **t'uotachk'a** (escort) to describe their occupation.

**boosoozoku** . . . Literally, "violent running tribe." Japanese euphemism for a bike gang.

**k'uk'e** . . . Idiot.

**Silna** . . . The Yehisrite goddess of justice, patron divinity of the Imperial Corps of Executioners.

**Hisri'hilm** . . . Standard Yehisrite hail/farewell. It means "Die with honour."

3) "Clan-sisters" (or "clan-brothers") on Fukunokami is the mark of homosexual relationships there.

4) Tabitha Lee appeared in the TSY story _Dakejinzou's Story_. The Sukebans (Pepper, Ginger and Sugar) made several appearances throughout the television series and manga, their last major run-in with Ataru and Lum being depicted in the TSY story _Choices_. Kamekichi Tampopo and Zatsudan Ayako (who had a different given name, Hisako) first appeared in my TSY-based lemon story _The Galatea Syndrome_.

5) Mike and I established in TSY (basing this on events in the first television episode) that tagging an Oni's horn buds is seen as the necessary physical act to be married to one. Thus, conversely, ripping off and destroying the horn buds is an act of divorce. Horn buds are also seen as the most sensuous part of an Oni's body; to suckle them with the mouth evokes great arousal (these themes I explored in my other TSY-based lemon story, _A Remarkable Destiny_). Because of that, any act done on an Oni's horns (outside the bounds of a Tag Race) by anyone other than a recognised mate is seen as tantamount to rape.

6) General galactic directions are marked as follows: coreward (towards the core of the galaxy; course 000), spinward (the direct opposite of coreward; course 180), inspin (with galactic rotation; course 270) and outspin (against galactic rotation; course 090). The degree measurements for vertical pitch in a ship's course begins at 000 (ahead), rotates to 090 (up), then to 180 (aft), and then to 270 (down).

7) The Lannarkites first appeared in the TSY story _Tag Race Mark Three_, they also having a considerable impact on events in _Nassur's Story_ and _Be Forever Nassur_ (with the side story _Marcia's Story_ serving as a continuation to one element of that storyline). I based the Lannarkites on the Brood (including their way of reproduction) from a classic _X-Men_ storyline. The events of the Second Colony Four Massacre were depicted in the story _Great Father Ataru Stage Seven: Re-birth_.


End file.
